The Light of Justice and Lelouch of the Rebellion
by Assailant of Saturn
Summary: After a mishap with a female time-traveller, Light Yagami finds himself in the world of Code Geass. Lelouch and Light clash as Zero and Kira battle for dominance and secrecy, yet only time will tell who comes out on top. Rating may go up in the future.
1. Chapter 1: Blind Justice

**The Light of Justice and Lelouch of the Rebellion: Intertwined**

**Author's Notes:**

Hey there you guys. This is my first fanfic, just so you know. I noticed that were no super-awesome completed Code Geass/ Death Note mash-ups, so I decided to make one of my own though I must note it was **INSPIRED BY KNIGHTOFZER0'S GEASS VS THE DEATH NOTE**. Just making sure we're on the same page ^.^

I like, no, I love to write, and I don't plan on abandoning this fanfic ever, simply because Code Geass and Death Note are that cool: especially combined. Also, if you find plot holes, inconsistencies, really lame descriptions, misspelled words, grammar errors or anything at all that interferes with the quality of my work, feel more than free to comment. I want your good reviews, it'll help me to continue to update more frequently. I want your bad reviews, because they show me what I'm doing wrong. But do not just post 'You suck'. Tell me why at least! I want to make my readers happy! So yes I want you to comment, but I'm not going to enforce some lame '10 reviews before I update' policy or anything like that. And while we're on the topic of updates, let me just say I will not update all that frequently. Not because I'm a lazy writer but because that annoying thing called 'my life' gets in my from time to time and I have to yell at it to go away and let me write in peace.

Also, this chapter will be relatively short compared to many monster chapters I intend on producing, simply because introductions shouldn't be an antagonizingly long ordeal. So without further ado, here is my first chapter. Enjoy!

...

~7:23 p.m., November 5th, 2007~

16th floor, L's top-secret investigation headquarters, Downtown Tokyo, Japan

...

**Chapter 1:**

_Blind Justice_

Rain poured down in sheets, in buckets; soaking everything out in the open in a matter of minutes, including two young men. One, with rich auburn hair and fixated amber eyes, possessing god-like grace and attractiveness, his broad shoulders arched back with pride and posture. The other with sleek, unkempt black hair and eerie eyes, as vacuous as swirling black water, and would rather go on a diet than sit up straight and wear shoes, making him appear lesser and shorter than his equal a few meters away even though they were the same height.

"Ryuzaki." The fairer man spoke to the unkempt one, keeping his tone even despite his irritation with the other.

"Yes, Light-kun?" The unkempt one answered the question calmly and with absolute placidity, seemingly imperturbable in the freezing rain.

"What are you doing out here in this storm?" He tried, but the man, Ryuzaki, only ignored him and continued staring out into the distance.

"Ryuzaki, you should come inside or you might catch a cold. Sickness is the last thing we'll need now that we're close to capturing Kira." The fairer man tried a different angle of persuasion, yet no response was given from the other man.

The 'fairer man' stood a few paces behind Ryuzaki, who took the liberty of narrowing his eyes in deep thought, grimacing slightly while he decided how to interpret the other's words. A silence stilled the air around them, giving off an illusion of tranquility. Ah, but the unspoken conversation talked louder than the rain and the foot-traffic several stories below the pair.

_So then, Light, do you know enough about Kira to determine that he is not being close to capture, to turn it around and say 'Kira can be stopped.' Have you realized that if the 13-day rule turns out to be a farce, then it will be impossible to deny that you are Kira? This can either be a good thing for you, or it may very well lead to your demise. _

_Do what you wish. Try as you might. Justice will prevail… for I have the gods on my side. Rem will, in time, sacrifice herself for Misa's sake, sending you and Watari both to hell. This much I know, and this much will come to pass._

But Ryuzaki didn't bother to voice his opinions this time, if only to antagonize the younger man. Light, also, didn't feel like probing Ryuzaki for his opinion, for they each knew in just a short matter or time, L or Kira would be devoured by the other. Which ever is the superior. Which ever can solve the mystery first. Which ever had the stronger sense of justice. But now, now when all was calm and the world they fought to change held its breath, there was too much suspense in the pent-up, gray air for such loaded talk.

"I was inside, trying to come up with a back-up plan, in the event that the Americans deny Watari's request." Ryuzaki drawled, referring to his attempt to have a prisoner test the Death Note to prove the falseness of the 13-day rule.

"But then I became distracted. I heard them, Light. The bells, from a distant church. Do you hear them, Light-kun?" He turned his head to look up into Light's eyes, only for a second, but then turned his attention back to the 'bells'.

"I don't hear anything." Light said bluntly after a few seconds.

"You sure? I can hear them. Deafeningly loud. It might be the top of the hour. A wedding. Or perhaps…"

A funeral. Yes. The word remained unspoken, yet the premise of death hung in the air. It always did, as death was a natural part of life. But death wasn't for a passing stranger today. It was coming for one of them. It had come for one of them. For Ryuzaki. For L.

_Leave me alone, damned ghost._ Light snarled at just one of the memories that refused to stop tormenting his troubled mind. He closed his eyes, trying to purge himself of this thought, only to see the last accusing glimmer in L's dead gray eyes, etched on his face forever, and tattooed similarly on the back of Light's eyelids.

But that had been hours ago. L Lawliett had died at 12:49 p.m. on the fifth of November. The clock on Light's desk now displayed a laser-red 9:23. Almost nine hours since L's death, but time still marched forward. Rain continued to fall. Criminals continued to require punishment. Now, a very restless and apprehensive nine hours later Light sat motionless at his cherrywood desk, his face a flawless indifferent mask and his posture perfectly straight except for his elbows on his desk, propping up his arms that held his head in his hands, a peculiar stance for someone who just 'won'. What made it even more odd was the chessboard for this particular game spanned the surface area of the entire globe, the pawns were every person alive, and the big prize was the gambler's own morality.

However, a certain sadness blurred the edges of what should have been the picture of victory, which didn't make sense at all. Light Yagami wasn't a police officer, a criminal, or anyone else that liked the kind of justice that L embodied. A fair trial for obviously guilty criminals, a system of courts and corruption that eventually let the scum of the earth run free and repeat their crimes again, that made innocent people pay for a guilty man's fare were the very things that Light, as Kira, rebelled against. And since L was Kira's mortal enemy, remorse was out of place here.

Yes. Light had won. Kira had won. But then why couldn't Light stop simmering in his empty sense of accomplishment, why couldn't he stop… mourning? Light was just as confused himself while the images of the day's events replayed themselves over and over again in his mind.

_Blind Justice_. Light thought, hoping that those two words he often used to collectively call that evil system that spurred so much anger inside his soul would force those images of his mind and clear it for the task at hand: what had to be done next.

With L gone, so much was within his reach. Should world domination be attempted? Would it be best now to only sit back and punish criminals while the world handled itself? Is not sharing the wealth of the world with third world countries considered a sin curable by his Death Note? What if the focus shifted to educating the still-innocent toddlers of the world against the wicked ways of their fathers?

But the truth was, on top of registering the fact that L was dead, Light's mind was subconsciously unable to process that the game was over. No one would attempt to pursue him as actively as L had. No one out there knew as much about Kira and his Death Note as L and his private team had managed to deduce. And no one else would ever have the gall or the brains to try and thwart Kira this round, which meant there was no need for all of those little back-up plans and safety procedures that basically devoured his spare time other than the basics, appear normal to society and kill criminals. All of this, with one scratch of a pen on cursed paper, was difficult for Light's mind to wrap around, since for the past year or so all those little schemes and plots were the bane of his existence, refining and perfecting the machine known as his brain into something lethal, amazing, and unstoppable.

But how do you communicate to this machine, which had already learned to ignore its counterpart, the heart, that it was time to power down now? And if this master mind of his had already sacrificed his humanity the second he wrote the first name into the death note, how were these post-victory emotions still able to resurface? That was the problem. It wasn't explainable. Just like the Death Note that had got him here in the first place.

The office was so still, so serene that the pounding of rain could be heard buffeting against the window panes.

'I can hear the bells, Light-kun. The end is coming.'

Only a mere, fleeting nine hours ago he'd felt the deep blue gaze of the only man he could call his equal.

_You are dead. You are gone, you are dead! You lost. You… allowed me to win, if you wanted to make me suffer like this than you should have stayed alive, you should have punished me, you should have proved me wrong. But you failed, you failed your justice system and you failed me! So rot in hell, broken corpse._ He thought for the thousandth time that evening and ran his hand through his shaggy auburn hair while trying to focus, but his train of thought faded out almost instantly, within the walls of a small gray room that was ever so familiar to him.

Light and Ryuzaki had just come inside from the rainstorm, the both of them leaving a trail of rainwater in their wake. Each held his own towel, but Light was surprised to see Ryuzaki bend down and wash Light's feet, massaging them gingerly with his long pale fingers.

"You don't need to do that for me, Ryuzaki. We can just change clothes and see everyone else. I'm sure they've been waiting for a while now."

"I'm sure there's no reason to rush. All we're doing now is waiting for approval of Watari's request."

_Unless, of course, you know something I don't, Kira-san. _Ryuzaki resisted the urge to add the zinger and merely finished off with,

"It feels right that I do this for you now. I don't feel like I'm much help nowadays."

"What are you saying? You're the one who's led us this far. We wouldn't be anywhere near as close to Kira if it weren't for you, Ryuzaki."

_And how is it you know we're close to Kira? Clearing the 13-day rule doesn't guarantee the capture of Kira. By itself, it only means someone has tampered with the Death Note and we, in turn, have a better understanding of the notebook's power._

"Maybe. But most of the detective work has been Light-kun's. In recent times, it's you who's come up with the best strategies, and I admit, I'm kind of jealous. I've never met someone who has came up to par with me."

"Don't. Don't flatter me. Don't say such useless things. It's our combined work that has got us results and it will be our combined work that brings down Kira. Our similarities and differences make us that much stronger. Now isn't the time to doubt yourself."

"Sure, sure…" L began chewing on one of his fingernails while absently gazing at a point above Light's head, "But I can't help but wonder. Even if what we discover leads us to Kira. Will it be Kira, or _a_ Kira? Will a new one spring up, again and again and again? How many more curveballs, murders, and chases will we have to take on, only to sever the strings of yet another puppet."

L sighed, and Light did so internally once he saw that L was about to finally get to the point. "These must sound like petty complaints to you, but to be honest it's not a discomfort of mine. I'm not going anywhere, Light-kun. My life is here, solving cases, catching criminals, no matter the difficultly or offense, but I was thinking... maybe you don't want that kind of life. There are endless reasons for you to give up the chase. Perhaps you'll want a family, with Misa. That woman loves you very much-"

"Don't be so brash about those things! Misa is just my-"

"Or maybe you'll... get bored with catching Kira, frustrated, or fall into a slump for the reason I just specified, or you may find your own reasons."

"It's almost an insult that you'd think I-"

"You may have other goals entirely. Other dreams. Other pursuits. You could do so much with yourself, yet you chose to stay tied down to this case, endlessly scrutinised, examined, and have faced numerous accusations that you are the enemy, Kira. Doesn't that bother you on some level?"

"What of these things, Ryuzaki? Don't you think I knew what I signed up for when I asked to help you solve this case? I'm not leaving, and I refuse to back down until Kira is caught. You have my word."

The two men, hardly older than teenagers studied each other for the next few seconds before L finally broke the silence,

"... Hopefully that wasn't a lie, as I'd be quite lonely without you. Not that I don't appreciate your father and his men's company. I just like it when someone else can prove that my theories make sense. And vice versa. Contrary to popular belief, it's lonely at the top, Light-kun."

A gruff, irritated voice pulled him out of his hellish memories, "Hey Light, if you've got this much spare time on your hands, how about fetching me some apples?" Ryuk, his rather neutral ally in the fight against Kira and L moaned from the bed, obviously sensing his lack of mental focus and trying to use it to his advantage. Next to him, perched on a rather out-of-place looking bubble gum pink mini chaise lounge, sat his most devoted pawn, Misa, who was devouring a strawberry cake slowly with small ladylike bites. In this midst of dealing with his internal strife, Light forgot they were even there.

"Ryuk!" The gorgeous blonde model chided with her mouth full of dessert, "My husband is too busy celebrating his victory and laying out his next deck of cards than to get apples now, isn't that it Light?"

"Hm? Husband? I think you failed to mention earlier the fact that you were married, Misa." Light turned the upper half of his body around in his swivel chair to face the pair, trying to sound optimistic and composed, because that's how Kira would carry himself around his accomplices, regardless of his plight or emotions.

"Oh, don't you remember? Back when we first found each other Misa said as a part of our pact that you'd be my boyfriend and we would go on dates together all the time, but usually we had to pretend we didn't know each other, and you hardly ever bought me things, came over, or even congratulated Misa when she was chosen to star in a new movie."

Light internally rolled his eyes at her intentional misuse of the third person, but didn't turn around and ignore her as Light learned it would only cause her to talk at him more, instead preferring to stare at one of her two red hair ribbons than to make eye contact. For all the colors they changed and moods they expressed, he rarely found much insight and intelligence amidst them.

"And let's not forget, you've been either chained to Ryuzaki's side or away on cool secret missions without me. And so for being such a bad boyfriend, I've decided that you have to propose to me now!" Misa giggled and lightly plucked a strawberry from her desert and popped it her mouth.

"And it's true Misa, I did say we'd create a new world together, and after we sort through the matter of L's death and take out the trash," Light suddenly realized with a tiny stab of regret that he and L's detective team would have to go as well in order to preserve the secrecy of the Death Note, "Then surely we can build a perfect would out of the ashes of the old one."

"Well that's my Light, rearing up and ready to go again. Hmm, but..." Misa's voice dropped into a whisper, something that didn't happen often,

"I was actually thinking that, maybe, you could take a tiny break from all this, and we could actually be normal for a little while. Not forgetting to be Kira, of course, but do easy fun things for a change."

"Sure, that could happen." Light shrugged his shoulders in response and got up out of his desk to stretch, failing to see that Misa's a little while equated to a few years, while Light considered any vacation from important work frivolous when it exceeded a single afternoon.

But as soon as Light got up from his seat, the phone in his pocket vibrated, putting Light and Misa's conversation on hold as he swiftly fished it out of his pocket answered,

"Hello?"

"Ah, Light. Listen, it's me, Matsuda." Light relaxed slightly at the sound of the easy-going detectives voice,

"Everyone else here has come to the conclusion it'd be best to, you know, not tell the world that their last hope against Kira has just been slain." He paused for a moment, considering his choice of words for a moment before quickly adding,

"N-Nothing against you, Light-kun. I just-"

"It's fine. Continue."

"Yes, so… tonight we're going to have a private funeral for Ryuzaki, and Watari also. Misa can come, if she wants. Just be at the third floor in a few." The usually goofy middle-aged man was completely serious as he spoke, and hung up afterwards without even waiting for a reply. Light snapped the small, black phone shut and put on his jacket.

"Misa, Matsuda and the others are hosting a funeral for L tonight. I'm sure the others would appreciate it if you made an appearance."

"But what about you? Aren't you coming?" Misa stood up suddenly and placed her plate of half-eaten cake on Light's nightstand.

"Yeah, I just want some... time alone."

Light walked out of the room, completely ignoring Misa's protests and left without so much as a good-bye. For the next fifteen minutes or so, he solemnly paced all around the large complex, meandering about and purposefully visiting the rooms and corridors used less often so he could think in peace. But in the midst of his wanderings, Light suddenly found himself outside, startled out of his zombie-like trance of thought as heavy rain drenched his second change of clothes for the day.

It had rained almost all day, sometimes lightly, like kitten feet on a trash can, or in driving pellets for only a few moments at a time, but to Light, it seemed like the rain had escalated into more contest cascading sheets after L had drew in his last breath, their drumming persistence echoing off of roofs, the pavement, and the sparse vegetation, coming together to sing a harmonious requiem for the dead detective of blind justice. Irritated, Light simply sat there with his head bowed, watching the rain drip off of his hands, his hands that were permanently superimposed with crimson for all of his deeds, justified yes, but regretfully, some of the innocent got hurt in the process. L was not one of them, so why would the world mourn his absence? Why would he, Kira, mourn his absence?

"Why? Why cry for the dead idealist? The one who favored Blind Justice over Righteous Punishment." Light found himself murmuring aloud and prepared to turn around and head back to the complex until something strange-looking caught his eye.

In the midst of the downpour, some giant white and red monster was lumbering about in a nearby alley.

_A Shinigami?_ Was Light's first thought, until he remembered that Shinigami can't be seen unless you touch their Death Note.

So then what was that thing? Confused, Light crossed the nearby street and peered closer to get a better look at what was going on. As he got closer, the monster's massive form divided into three main shapes clustered around something small and crying out for help with a pitiful high-pitched voice.

_A girl._ Light deduced, and it took less than a second to realize what was going on, these three men were harassing her. Instantly, Light clenched his fists, angry,

_What is this? Do these people think that I'm just an idle threat? Did they not think that Kira wouldn't hear about this, that I can easily wield my powers of death to pass judgment on these worthless vagrants?_

Light prepared to use the little piece of paper he always kept hidden in his watch when he realized two very important details: he didn't know any of these guys' names, and the driving rain falling practically in buckets around him would probably soak the slip of paper and make it impossible to write on anyway. But a lack of preparedness and a rainstorm didn't entitle him to leave the poor woman to a cruel fate.

_Why is this even a question? How would I live up to the symbol of Kira if I didn't even follow through with my actions? I am Kira, God of Judgement, Protector of the Innocent and Weak. There is no way I can condone this!_

And with that, Light nonchalantly walked into the dark alleyway and stood with his arms spread wide between the girl and her assailants, the orange light of the streetlamps giving Light a golden god-like glow.

"You three, what has this girl done to you that you have to harass her? I suggest you leave her alone and run while you still can."

_After this girl runs far enough away, I'll distract them, call them some names, and run back to the complex. It's hardly even a block away from here and these men are pitifully out of shape. I'll make it back and one of the security guards in the lobby will see what's wrong and intervene if bad gets to worse. If I'm lucky, he will ask for their names, and I'll eliminate them with my Death Note later._ Light thought, pleased with his plan, but strangely enough, the girl cowering behind him hadn't moved an inch.

_Run._ He telepathically told the girl while the three men only laughed, the middle one taunting him,

"Oh, so this puny little boy wants to play hero now, huh? The noble white prince riding on a pony."

"Sure, how about it boys? I say we should let him play pretend, and give him the royal treatment too."

The one on the right grinned and began cracking his knuckles in preparation for a fight. The girl behind Light gasped, probably expecting her savior to end up running for his life or die here.

"What do you think you're doing? Run now!" Light hissed under his breath at the girl, turning his head around to see what the hold-up was, only for the girl to grab Light's leg roughly, her long nails digging into his flesh through his khaki pants, and in a dizzying flash of bright light, the God of Justice disappeared with the girl, leaving the three men gaping in confusion.

...

Unknown

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...

... ...

... ... ... ...

While Light Yagami's soul drifted through the uncrossable plane: time, the forces of the universe strove to keep him back in the world he belonged. His body, disintegrated into massless particles, lay stranded and motionless despite the force of geass tugging on them. The phenomenon was comparable to a simple grate. Water and pasta will usually sit comfortably mixed in a bowl, yet when the contents are tilted down towards a grate, only the water is able to pass through the tiny holes etched into the metal fixture and into a different bowl. The water was the woman's soul, which had no business in Light's time, so it was allowed to pass through without difficultly. But Light's was the spaghetti, halted by the grate as it tried to go through the same way as the water. Gravity versus Physics. Matter cannot pass through a space smaller than its own mass. Objects with more mass attract objects with lesser mass. At any other time, physics would have won. But not only did geass have the 'gravity' to set up the situation, but it also held the power to alter the same situation to go its way. Geass had the power to add a human hand to the equation to grab the spaghetti and bypass over the grate to place it in the second bowl with the water.

Yet while geass and natural law fought over him, Light himself felt nothing, as his nervous system couldn't function properly while broken up into trillions of pieces, but his soul felt the strain of supernatural forces forcing him to cross the fourth dimension. It took time. Time that was not counted, since time was held at bay in this region, yet the resistance force of the universe disrupted the trajectory course of the girl and Light's path just enough to alter their destination. But after quite a while of this, geass finally won the battle and the pair landed in the year 2017, the girl immediately conscious and standing while a young man appeared next to her, still and unaware of his surroundings.

"Eh. Six years of this cursed geass and time-travel never gets old. I'd dare say it's the one making me old." The girl muttered sarcastically to herself, not even caring to hide the fact the she had a geass from the comatose body next to her, as it'd be impossible to explain away how they'd came here without any means of rationality anyway. She yawned and stretched her lithe, pliant body just enough to wake up her brain as she redid her long reddish gold ponytail. Already her usual plan of action ran through her head,

_Figure out year. Get food if you can. Sleep if it's safe. If mission unsuccessful, find a deserted place and teleport away as soon as possible._

"Hey. Get up, I know time-travel can be rough sometimes, but I'm sure we can find somewhere better to sleep than the sidewalk." The girl bent down and prodded the man's face with her finger, her long nail cutting a temporary shallow indention on the taut, pale skin of his cheekbone.

"Whatever. Be that way." She rolled her eyes and dug into the man's pockets, her small hand resurfacing a moment later holding a compact black wallet with several shiny cards of all sorts pocking through the top and bottom.

"Usually people get upset when you mess with their stuff, and it wouldn't hurt to know the guy's name." The girl said to no one in particular, pulling out a random card. The girl had to squint to read the inscriptions in the faint glow of streetlights nearby to make out the little letters in black official ten point point.

"Yagami Light."

Everyone felt the tremor, the certain pulse of energy associated with the dramatic arrival of change, yet only the immortals, those closest to geass, could feel it enough to notice something off about its nature. You see, there can only be one dominant force. One ruler of a nation. One figurehead that dictates how its puppets behave at any given time. The reigning super power of this world was geass. Geass overrode all natural laws. Geass corroded reason. Geass reshaped humanity. Geass was the last word, the trump card, the underground currency of this realm. Just as the Death Note was in Light's time. The two powers coming together could only create disaster for anyone wielding either of these and anyone caught in the crossfire.

The girl grinned, intrigued at the odd name yet liking the way it rolled off her tongue, but oblivious what she had done by bringing this man here. "Yagami Light…"

Amber eyes flew open. The owner, bound and gagged in a chamber of which she'd already died of suffocation in at least a dozen times, was several hundred years old and had never felt this unique sensation, this current of danger, apprehension, and suspense. The reason for the feeling would have been pondered, had the owner not run out of air yet again, their brain temporarily shut down for the repair of oxygen-deprived cells.

Orbs as blue as the ice they were enclosed in widened in interest, though they did nothing further to investigate.

"Interesting." A violet-eyed immortal, old only in years of existence smiled with delight.

"Probably nothing important." Stern green eyes, deadset on the road in front of them, completely ignored the matter.

Yet another pair of eyes, wide like a child's and the color of fully bloomed lavender flowers didn't so much as blink, instead one blonde eyebrow was raised in curiosity.

"Did you just sense that?" He addressed his subordinate. The other man didn't respond at first, but stood as still as a statue in concentration. Only his eyes showed signs of life, in which a bird-like sigil quickly appeared and faded away.

"Yes. But it's nothing geass-related, your highness."

These certain immortals and only a handful more across the globe noticed, yet made no active effort to find the source of the disruption. How could they when it was but a young teenage boy that had caused it? Yet Light Yagami wasn't just any teenage boy. He was, in his mind, a god, a supreme being of judgement, righteousness, a patron saint to the weak and innocent.

"Look here, Light. I'm not going to wait for you all day. Either you get up and come with me now, or you can sleep there alone. Take your pick." The girl sharply kicked Light's shoulder in an attempt to get him to stir.

_I must find out the year as soon as possible_. The girl thought as a low rumble was emitted from her stomach, reminding her of her second objective.

But only silence came from the sleeping man.

"Fine then. I don't have time for people who want to be difficult."

The girl rolled her eyes, but as she turned around to continue down the path of the dark alleyway, she tripped over Light's leg. The sudden contact between Geass-user and Death Note carrier sent a quick jolt up her spine. Sensing this, the girl glanced back at Light's sleeping form. She sighed and shook her head, going about her own way without looking back.

...

I'll entice you to wonder again in the morning


	2. Chapter 2: Shattered Fate

**The Light of Justice and Lelouch of the Rebellion: Intertwined**

**Author's Notes:**

You know, I just sat down to write a lovely author's notes filled with delightful epic nonsense, but then it just struck me: I should have selected the 'crossover' category instead of 'normal' anime, according to the rules of this site (none of which ever get followed anyway.) it's apparently a major felony and blah blah blah my account will get suspended or whatever. But then another realization started to beat me over the head repeatedly: This story still takes place in the Code Geass Universe. This is still a story revolving around Lelouch (even though he has yet to make an appearance). Light simply has to arrive first to make things interesting and create suspense before we get all on board here. So don't you worry, Lelouch is coming, he is just fashionably late.

REVIEWS ARE GOOD REVIEWS MAKE ME HAPPY PLEASE CONTINUE TO DO SO! IGJWOJLMLKMGLWKGNWKH!

... That aside, I hope you eagerly devour this chapter whole, as I wrote it all (minus editing) in study hall. And now a word to my reviewers!:

Hilaire- Thanks!

Asukaforever92- Thanks!

LelouchLawliett- Lol, I'll try to update as much as I can and thank you.

Overshadowed Medallion- I believe I answered your question above, and thank you.

JT- Thank you dearly for that. ;P

Vivibo- I agree with you completely. Light and Lelouch are similarly goal-oriented and are magnificent bastards and geniuses in their own right (and have amazing swooshy hair) yet there are several obstacles that prevent people from sticking them in a fanfic together (that isn't graphic yaoi. blech.). Light overuses his pawns and stays in the shadows, which is smart and I agree, he probably his smarter than Lelouch, but its hard to make him fight against our purple-eyed boy who personally arrives at each of his 'crime scenes' in his flashy Knightmares and is quite headstrong, though he easily adapts to any situation and has multiple backup plans as you said, which gives him an advantage over Light-kun. I will not put Light in a Knightmare or give him an army, simply because that isn't something I can picture him doing, though all of his actions won't be through his pawns or a TV screen. Things will be interesting, I can promise you that ^.^ oh, and thank you for your lovely review.

**LAST BUT NOT LEAST:** To be brutally honest, this is nothing but a prelude part 2. Nothing amazing happens until the next chapter, but you aren't allowed to skip over this or else you will be angry and confused and annoyed without the explanations and whatnot in this chapter. Just think, OVER 9000 words beautifully handcrafted for you to read, so why would you skim over? Enjoy, sincerely, the bringer of death.

...

~9:28 a.m., September 20th, 2017~

Room 145, Ramada Inn and Suites, Shinjuku, Tokyo

...

**Chapter 2:**

_Shattered Fate_

"Hey, it's time to wake up now, you've been asleep the entire night and I've got more important things to do today than hearing you snore."

The irritated voice of a young woman spoke to him, its even soprano tone seeming vaguely familiar despite Light's inability to recall where he'd heard it from, the sudden noise jarring a reluctant Light into wakefulness. A wakefulness he didn't feel ready to embrace. Light screwed his eyelids shut to block the light assailing his tired eyes, instantly hyperaware of the stiffness and strain in his limbs, which ached and throbbed painfully even though he'd been motionless the whole night. The irritating sensation was comparable to post-overkill workout soreness plus a hangover, not a fun combination in any way. Though the strangest thing about it was that Light didn't remember doing any thing strenuous of the sort the night before to bring on this kind of agony. In fact, he didn't remember doing any thing at all.

All the copper-haired teen knew now was that there was a girl in his room and for some reason he felt wasted; drained of energy despite his full night's sleep. Not wanting to move, Light silently willed the girl to go away with his mind and hopefully terrorize someone else. But as Light would soon discover, she was annoyingly persistent.

"I'm not an idiot. I just saw your eyelids twitch. Now get up before I decide to resort to other methods of getting you out of bed, and believe me, they won't be very fun." The girl said and for a few seconds, sharp crunching sounds, like a deer stepping on twigs, could be heard before the girl added as an after thought,

"Well, not very fun for you at least."

_No._ Light fought to fall back asleep, and almost succeeded before his face and chest spontaneously froze and burned at the same time. Light quickly realized that the irritating sensation was the result of one of the girl's 'other methods': a bucket of cold water. Light immediately jumped up out of bed like a coiled spring and yelled in surprise,

"What is wrong with you, woman! Coming into my room and throwing water on me like this-"

Light was seconds away from delivering the grinning little she-demon in front of him a tirade she'd never forget, but stopped midsentence as three revelations hit him at the speed of light and with the momentum of a falling jumbo jet.

One: this was not his room.

Two: he had never been in this place before.

Three: he had no clue why and how he got here.

_Where am I? What is this place? ..._ Light thought, his breath catching in his throat and his heart fluttering in his chest, though only for a second. _Calm down. You won't solve anything by panicking. You're a detective, the best in the world now that L's dead. Surely you can figure out some clue as to where you are and how you got here._

Light took a few seconds to glance around the neat, pristine room, looking for some sort of clue. 'Too neat' was the first thought that struck him about the square cell of a room. Rather, spartan was a more accurate word to describe it, as only the bare necessities could be found: a queen-sized bed, a small couch, and a floor lamp were present, and along with the walls, ceiling and floor they were various drab shades of white, the only exceptions to this were a mahogany bedside table and TV stand on which an ancient looking set about the size of a cardboard box stood glaring down at him with its large, empty screen. Light finally found what he was looking for on a folded brochure atop the bedside table, the name 'Ramada' printed on the top of it.

_All right, I can live with being placed in a hotel. Better than the street or in some unfamiliar person's home, though this only answers one of my many questions. I'm sure this girl has to know something about what happened. It's best to appear confused and misguided yet make her aware of my rank, as no one would feel suspicious around a person who seems to know nothing._

Light cleared his throat and showed the girl his police badge,

"I'm terribly sorry for that, Miss. I am a police officer, and I have a few questions for you. Failure to answer there questions could result in arrest or possible-"

Unfortunately for him, Light's interrogation was over before it started, as the burst of energy he used up in his astonishment was sapped at a frighteningly alarming rate. Within thirty seconds of standing up, his legs felt like they'd turned into rubber, his arms like limp noodles at his side, and with no support his body unceremoniously crumpled to the floor while rainbow ribbons of delirium streamed across his vision. During this, the girl only watched him fall and only peered down at him, unimpressed, as Light found himself face-to-face with her tiny bare feet.

"Yeah, good luck with that. Seems to me like you won't be going anywhere until you calm yourself down and allow your body to recover. Strange that you were out for that long anyway, most people are conscious within seconds, a minute at the most." Light saw the little feet in front of him spin around and take a few steps away, leaving Light to envision all sorts of horrible scenarios about what the girl could have done to him in his sleep.

"Allow my body recover? What did you do to me! Why can't I move? Why don't my legs work?" Light struggled to stand back up but proceeded to have his face rendezvous with the carpet once more.

"What's the matter? Never time-travelled before?" The girl cooed sweetly as if she were talking to a young child, ignoring the irritated expression on Light's face while placing a few pocky sticks in her mouth like they were cigarettes. Though seeing Light there, pitifully prostrated on the floor, she cocked her head like a Chihuahua in concern and took one of the chocolate-covered sticks out of her mouth and held it out to him.

"Want one?"

"… No thanks." He replied to the thin beaded layer of saliva on the chocolate end. After she withdrew it Light made his second attempt at what was supposed to be a brief, concise interrogation. "Now. If you answer my questions and I'll free you without charges and without harm done to you. First, where is-"

The girl, to his displeasure, snorted with contempt above him, "You'll free me if I answer your questions? In case you haven't noticed, your only method of transportation right now is to roll on the floor and secondly, you lack the energy to do so much as to open a bag of chips, let alone arrest me, not to be disrespectful, Officer Yagami Light. Besides, your task force probably doesn't exist anymore since we just arrived in the future very early this morning." Just to prove her point, the girl began nudging Light's repeatedly cheek with her foot.

"Stop it! I don't appreciate this... I said quit it! Stop it this instant!" Light growled menacingly and tried to move his head, but it did nothing to stop her pestering.

"Hahaha. You can't do anything!" She chuckled before finally stopping and sitting down cross-legged in front of him with several packets of pocky in hand.

_This girl… She may be mad. She may be on drugs. That, or she's being incompetent on purpose… but either way I don't have time for her. I don't have time for this. I'm Kira, dammit. I am Kira and I just killed L. If I go missing now, people will suspect, the other investigators back at the headquarters will talk if I'm absent after L's death. I can only imagine what they're already saying about me missing Ryuzaki's funeral. My men, they need me more than ever now. I have to tell them how to carry on after this. Fabricate a charade, an elaborate chase to last them a few years before I gradually dispose of them all, with their elimination killing everyone who knows of Death Note that isn't under my control. The effects of the drug she used on me… who knows when they'll wear off, but the girl is right, I have to be calm to recover faster. However, I was briefly able to stand after being doused by water. Maybe if I'm fast enough I can turn things in my favor…_

"But I wouldn't sweat it if I were you, it's true, you won't be able to go home now, but while you slept I made you some fake ID cards and even gave you a little cash. My way of saying sorry for dragging you here without your consent, though I guess you should be the one telling me thanks for saving your life." The girl smirked coolly.

_Save my life... _Light wondered while furiously glaring up at the girl, trying to remember when such a thing happened that the all-powerful Kira needed help from a haughty little woman like this one.

But instead, hazy memories of a storm, a girl crying for help, and the stench of damp alleyways followed by a red beam of light filled his mind and reverted back to his rude awakening.

_Yes. Now that she mentioned it, she does look like the girl from before, though I doubt her version of the story is the correct one. Arrogant she-demon. I remember walking out in that storm last night, I remember the thugs and a girl. The girl… the one I remember was rather petite and had a shrill voice. It's a good possibility- no, this almost definitely is the same girl as before. But I still have no idea why she brought me here. For now, I should continue to try and extract information from her and leave. Staying here any longer would endanger the secrecy of Kira's identity, and possibly this girl._

The girl in question was still sitting in front of him the same way as before, though she was busy staring at something out the window, so he took advantage of her moment of ignorance to study her a bit. She was small, Light noticed, so pitifully small that she appeared tinier than even Misa, who was but five foot three with her heels on. Also unlike Misa, the girl dressed simply, shunning the many bangles, necklaces, and chokers his conspirator often sported and wore nothing but a plain white frock that just skimmed over her knees. Her pale skin, embodying the very luster and hue of porcelain, perfectly curled strawberry blonde hair that she let hang loose just past her shoulders, and petite frame made her look like some sort of doll merely sparked to life with electricity like Frankenstein.

But what really made her stand out were her eyes, large and a pale shade of china blue, couldn't have mimicked a doll's more perfectly with their stoically empty expression and watery depths like an endless ocean, though eerily glassy with the mantle of someone who experienced loneliness and apathy often. She brazenly met his glares each time he looked her way, studying him with the same cold, calculating gaze that he used on her while twirling bits of her hair in her fingers. While, yes, it was certain now that the girl matched the physical description of the random damsel in distress, her persona was, if anything, completely opposite from before. Now the girl was poised, confident, and defiant, her thin lips curved slightly upwards in a mischievous smirk, a complete contrast from the sniveling, crying thing Light saved last night. And there was no way Light was going to let her get the best of him.

Determined to make his limbs work, if only for a second, Light delicately pressed his palms to the floor and tucked his unwilling legs under his body, but before they could give out on him, Light mustered the little energy he had left and sprang. On any one else, this wouldn't have worked, only this girl was so small and unsuspecting that almost as soon as Light grabbed the girl's shoulders, Light's deadweight and the girl's own mass only required the help of gravity to fall to the floor, though from the moment their flesh made contact, Light felt a shock, an electric current passing between them, causing him to cringe slightly and the girl to recoil, though that may have just been from the abruptness of his action. Trying his best to ignore the repelling force, Light focused his minimal strength on propping up his arms so that he just wasn't laying on top of the girl, positioning his face above hers to look more intimidating.

_Not exactly the ideal position to hold down some girl I just met, but right now I don't have time to be considerate. I have to return. I have to get back to my men at all costs._

"Listen up. I have no intentions of harming you in any way. I want you to answer my questions. Once you do that, I'll let you go with no further trouble, but only if you cooperate."

"Cnt-breth-" She writhed and squirmed a good deal while underneath him, making the situation even more awkward.

"Then answer me. Where am I?"

"Tokyo."

"Where exactly?"

"Shinjuku."

_Shinjuku? Well that's not too far away, though I wonder how she was able to bring me this far. It's at least ten miles from the complex to here._

"How was it you were able to get me here?"

"Help."

"All right. So tell me the truth, what's wrong with me? Why don't my limbs work properly?"

"Told you. Time travel."

Initially, Light narrowed his eyes, silently pressuring her to tell him something rational. Something that made sense. Something that could get him results. But the girl only laid there, unflinching under his weight and gaze. In most situations, Light wouldn't even resort to such measures. It often proved beneficial to appear amicable, yet serious to the average outsider, and even more so when dealing with people closer to him, but everything about this girl was so... unnerving. But what really got under Light's skin was that whenever she spoke of her 'time-travel', she said it with a straight-face, an almost bored expression, and with nonchalance as if everyone simply time-traveled at will, her steady gaze persuading him to accept the truth.

_No. She is just a liar. No one can time-travel and I will get the truth out of her._

With great difficultly and a lot of will power, Light adjusted his grip to the girl's throat instead, leaning in closer, his eyes becoming like amber fire buffeting against her cold blue ones and said in a menacing hiss of a whisper that could send shivers up anyone's spine,

"I think you misunderstood my question. I asked: what happened to my limbs? What drug did you use on me, to make me unconscious, to ruin me like this? Is it permanent, will I walk again, what the hell possessed you to do this!"

"And I told you the answer, Yagami Light. Time travel. I used the power of my geass to come here. You must have one too, as I imagine that's one of the things that made you miserable after our journey."

"Shut up! Just shut the fuck up if you don't have anything intelligent to say!" Light yelled, but then lowered his voice once he remembered that he was in a hotel, but his tone remained just as angry,

"Whatever it is you did to me prevented my ability to move freely. If you want someone to blame, you're looking at the wrong person. Now as you so kindly pointed out, I really can't do anything to you. Once this drug wears off, I'll take my things and leave. I have a job, and it's imperative I get to my post as soon as possible." Light snarled at her and snatched his cell phone out of his pocket, searching his phone for Misa's number so she could pick him up from this god-forsaken place.

_Wait. _Light thought, hope surging through him, giving him a small helping of strength. _I just… got my cell phone out. That time, my arm responded to me. Maybe..._

No. Light tried to move his left arm, but it didn't work. Both of his legs also refused to respond. Exasperated, Light tried his right arm again, just a small flick of his wrist to check the time on his watch. It worked, but it was by no means without consequence, as his arm was sore as hell and moving it felt akin to hundreds of fire ants crawling up and down his veins and biting as they pleased, but at least he could use it, if only sparingly.

_Seems like this woman won't tell me anything else useful, so it makes no sense for me to be on top of her like this. I can just use my arm to scoot myself off of her and then call someone to pick me up, preferably Misa because she won't ask questions. As for this girl… I'll just have deal with her until Misa can get here, though I don't think she'll be a problem as long as I don't ignore her._ Light shuddered as he remembered the splash attack she'd given him earlier, of which his clothes were still recovering from.

"I highly doubt that will work." Said the girl, referring to Light scrolling through his contacts on his phone, though he only ignored her and continued talking,

"I'm going to call a friend of mine to pick me up since Shinjuku is a stone's throw from where I work. I'd like for you not to speak of this incident to anyone, and for your own safety I advise you to not abduct and drug people who try to save you, or my lucky rescue won't be very worthwhile." Light told the girl as he painfully propped himself on his one working arm and rolled off. Amidst the tumult of this, Light thought he heard the girl snicker to herself, but when he looked up at her docile, cherubic face, he figured it was just his imagination.

_No service?_ Light stared at his phone, puzzled. An annoying gray box with sound effects kept popping up every time he clicked the call button over Misa's name, and even when he selected his father or his mother. _Top of the class phone, my ass. I'm right in the middle of one of Tokyo's busiest settlements and I can't even call someone who's only a few miles away._

"Everything working okay, Light?" The girl smirked at him, able to detect his frustration and rubbing it in with noticeable arrogance in her tone.

Officer Light Yagami. Yagami Light. Her two previous recollections of his identity still puzzled him. Sure he'd shown her his police ID, but that had been one of his fakes from the Kira investigation.

_How could she have found out my name this quickly? The only thing with my real name that I have with me is my Driver's License and in order to know that... She must have went through my pockets!_ Light gasped, feeling his front and back pockets for his wallet but came up empty each time. _She took my wallet, probably stole a few things out of it as well. Damn. I have no phone service, no money, I can't even move, and I'm stuck with an annoying thieving girl. To think I saved her..._

"What did you do with my stuff!" Light hissed, managing to move his left leg this time to sit upright to face the girl, who was absentmindedly staring out the window again and paid him no attention, though she replied without missing a beat.

"Moved it. I figured you'd get upset if your stuff got wet if I had to resort to splashing you, so I put it on the desk over there beforehand." The girl indicated the location of his missing items with a deliberate flourish of her wrist and snap of her fingers. Light quickly located the desk but shot her a doubtful look.

_I swear, if she stole a single dollar-_

"I didn't take anything! I actually gave you compensation for your ordeal, though I don't know if it will get you too far. You're unemployed now, Light." Lydie drawled and started noisily nibbling on more pocky sticks.

"Whatever, we'll certainly see if you were telling the truth in just a moment." Light seemed to be gaining more control of his body, gradually, he coaxed his right leg into functioning just enough so that he could stand up and walk over to the large glass window at the other end of the room that mostly obscured by a green opaque curtain, on the way over snatching up his wallet, which actually felt heavier then it had been before.

"Didn't I just tell you? Your cellphone doesn't work here, Light." The girl huffed, but didn't make an attempt to stop him.

"I think I might get better service if I move closer to the window." Light stopped and turned his head to face her, "Do you have problems with this sort of thing, my cell phone usually never acts up like this."

"I just arrived here late last night. I don't have a cell phone."

"Just stop it. Today is November 6th, 2007. We are not in the past, we're not in the future, and I can prove it to you, see!" Light pulled back the curtain with as much strength as he could muster, though to his surprise, the annoying damsel started giggling.

"Maybe it's you who needs to turn around and look, Light."

_Just humor her so she'll let you leave._ Light told himself and glanced out the window, and what he saw there took Light's breath away, his phone slipping from his hand in his moment of distraction, the muffled clattering of what used to be top notch technology of his day on the thin carpet floor was all but ignored as Light took in what he saw below him. The room that this girl had stuck him in was some odd twenty stories off the ground, and all around were several deep blue skyscrapers, all virtually identical in size and structure, while the ground below him almost impossible to see, and massive airships seemingly taken straight out of a science fiction movie roamed the skies, spitting out purple high tech looking things onto the ground below.

"This is... the future?" Was all he managed to say while trying to process this world that was nothing like his own.

"You don't like to listen, do you? I already told you that's where my geass took us."

"I don't understand… I don't understand…" His voice was a faint whisper as he slowly stepped away from the window, his rational mind tried to wrap around the irrational truth, almost stumbling over the girl as he backed into her.

_This can't be... I-I can't be here... I'm Kira... I'm Kira and I belong in 2007, where Misa and my father and everyone else is, I have a job to do and I can't let anything stand in my way of getting it done. This... this just can't be real!_

"The drugs! They're screwing with my mind, my vision, altering my perception of reality…" Light yelled. But even then, he knew this theory was incorrect. The rest of the room and the girl looked perfectly normal, he noted while staring at the drab room. Had the drugs really altered his mind like he claimed, then the view outside wouldn't be the only thing abnormal. Deep down inside he knew this, but he just couldn't believe it. There was no way… there was no logical reason that explained why he was suddenly in the future.

"Stubborn. Well, like it or not you're in 2017 a.t.b., Japan, or should I say, Area 11."

"No… it can't be. Lie. Set-up. Trap. Folly! I-I have to get back to 2007! It's of most importance that I return." Light's face contorted into a horrible mask of agony and he grabbed the girl's shoulders whispering eerily, "I have to get back, back to 2007. Can you use your time travel thing to get me there? I have to return… I must return."

"What is with you and grabbing people? Ever heard of asking nicely?" The girl rolled her eyes and folded her arms over her flat chest while Light scowled at her with distaste.

It was annoying. It was so utterly, repulsively annoying how he was going through a crisis that was all this woman's fault and yet she was unaffected and insouciant, knowing the answers yet refusing to tell him. And Light could hardly take it any longer.

"Just tell me how to leave, demon!"

"Oh, and you think calling me names is going to get you results? You're still pretty weak, you know. Even someone my size could knock you out. If I were you I'd show a little respect, or at least calm down before you overwork your body. Time travel hasn't been kind to you."

"Shut up. You've done enough! Just-" The soreness in Light's legs suddenly escalated, and to keep himself from crying out, he grit his teeth in anguish. It was all he could do but to casually plop down onto the still-soaked bed he'd slept on last night.

"That's better." The girl grinned in a taunting way, "You must be hungry, huh? Ten hours out plus time travel must have you starving. I've got microwavable chicken and rice if you want."

She got up without even waiting for Light's response and disappeared into an adjoined room, of which Light only now realized was there. First the rustling of plastic could be heard as the girl tore off the wrappers from the food packets, then the faucet as she added water, lastly the flat hum of microwaves for a few moments while Light pondered his situation.

_It's still so hard to believe… even after seeing it with my own eyes. I'm not on drugs. I'm fairly certain the girl doesn't actively do drugs, though that doesn't stop her from possibly being crazy. But, if this is the case, and I've just been flung into, where was it? 2017? If this is true, then it's unwise to leave now, or at least, not until my limbs return to normal. Kira must also be put on hold since- My Death Note!_ A fluttering panic rose in his chest once he remembered that his Death Note had been left behind in 2007. Light looked around, and for the first time saw that Ryuk and his sarcastic remarks were indeed missing.

_There's no need to be pessimistic. I remember the Death Note, which means I still own it, and no one has managed to destroy it. Ryuk also mentioned once that if another person began using it that after a certain amount of days I'd lose my memory, so it's likely no one has found it yet either. But although the Death Note is paramount to Kira's judgement, I can't even begin to plan here. Everything depends on this girl. If she can send me back to my own time, then all of this hassle can be avoided and I can resume being Kira as usual. If not… I have a long and tedious journey ahead of me._ Light was so lost in his thought that the tantalizing smell of teriyaki chicken and pasty rice didn't so much as cause him to stir until the girl came back, handing him his bowlful and sitting next to him without a word spoken about it.

"Thank you." He told her. The girl only shrugged her shoulders and swirled the chicken and rice counterclockwise in her bowl with her spoon, looking out the window again for probably the hundredth time that morning. Out of curiosity, Light followed her gaze, but saw nothing remotely suspicious outside, ignoring the looming gray airships anyway, though it was Light's impression that these things were normal for 2017.

"Why do you keep looking outside like that?" He asked her, but she only shrugged again.

"There's something special about you, isn't there?" He tried again, trying to elicit a response. It took a second, but after deciding paying him attention was more amusing than the window or playing with food,

"Stop asking so many questions, I'm trying to eat." She muttered simply, even though her forkful of chicken never once made it past her lips, but after a second kept talking anyway, "The answer to probably all of your questions is geass. Yes. Geass brought me to your time period. Those men were after me because they saw me appear out of nowhere, due to my geass. You came to this time period through geass and geass is the only thing that can get you out."

_Again with that weird word._ Light pondered it briefly while letting the mushy taste of instant lunch simmer in his mouth.

_Geass, is it? I heard her mention it a few times but I didn't think much of it. Hmm... Perhaps this could be bad or this can be beneficial. What if 'geass' is some sort of code name for a Death Note, or a Shinigami? But this assumption doesn't make too much sense. Just the name, Geass, it doesn't sound related to Death Note. This word doesn't sound English at all, though it could be European or Middle Eastern. I can't help but think that a similar power would have a similar name. Secondly, Death Note, an instrument of death, and Shinigami, their purposeless owners, are pretty much irrelevant to the fabric of time and space._

_No. It's best to assume that this is a different matter entirely. As for the girl, it wouldn't be an inaccurate assumption to say she probably doesn't know about Death Notes, as she had no qualms about keeping quiet about her geass, I'd figure she'd mention it if she had a supernatural notebook, and how improbable would it be that she possessed two abilities of this sort? This is probably the case, and either way it's best I keep her in the dark about it. I don't know how smart this girl is or what she knows about Kira, and there's the chance that if I tell her I have a murdering notebook, she might realize that Kira's inactivity since November of 2007 conceding with her abduction of me in the same time frame and deduce that I am Kira. It's best to just ask questions now and try to understand this 'geass' before deciding what to do next._

"Geass?" Light repeated, prying as delicately as he could.

"Yes. Geass, the Power of Kings, from what I've seen, is a power bestowed to you by another person, a person who had geass themselves before there's evolved to the point where they became immortal, only granted if you promise to fulfill a wish of the said Immortal. But the power itself is quite complex. Simplest definition: the geass manifests itself according to your greatest wish, and is present in a person's eye when activated. And that's the magic of it, geass makes anything possible, and time-travel became my power, ultimately bringing us here, 2017."

"Ten years…" Light thought, slightly confused. "But what I saw outside looked like more than a mere decade's worth of inventions and innovations. The entire city had to have been leveled for such a drastic change in architecture."

"Exactly."

"What? Are you saying Tokyo was destroyed in my absence?"

"Parts of it, yes. Almost everything new you see was initially destroyed."

"How, why? What could possibly happened…" Light murmured allowed, suddenly wondering what became of the world he abandoned, if the wilderness of the world that he had almost completely tamed into a gentle Garden of Eden had reverted back to its evil ways, going so far as to destroy themselves without him, their God and savior.

And what about Misa, his family, and the Kira legacy? Was that sweet, yet painfully simple-minded blonde model still waiting for their 'little while' back at the complex? Did Ryuk go back to the world of Shinigami after his disappearance? Was his father still faithfully hunting Kira, perhaps finally realizing with the disappearance of his son coinciding with the inaction of Kira that his little boy was indeed the masked killer he'd vowed to destroy? Did maybe, someone else find a Death Note and continue the Kira legacy? Or was it all destroyed, all burnt to the ground by the unnamed enemy the girl spoke of. But her ever-present smirk only grew wider,

"Well, for starters, Britannia took over Japan seven years ago, and after that they forced on Japan their calendar, A.T.B., which starts fifty-five years after the beginning of the A.D. era, so technically you're in the year 2074 A.D. Oh, and after Britannia invaded, Japan got completely steam-rolled and now just carrying around the Japanese flag or wearing traditional Asian clothing around here means trouble. So unless you want to get beat up by the officials or anyone Britannian, this place is known as Area 11."

It didn't make sense. Nothing… made sense. As soon as Light got over the shock of one impossible thing, more and more surprises popped up from every corner. But in spite of his shock, Light still wanted to know more of the strange land he was thrown into, even if it meant accepting strange truths.

"So you're trying to tell me _Great Britain_ did this?" Light gaped in disbelief.

He remembered being told in school about the history of England and their monarchy society, how sometimes in the past a benevolent ruler inherited the throne and carried out justice accordingly, only for all of their work to be undone later once a lunatic cousin took over and caused chaos. However, back in Light's time, Great Britain, or Britannia as the girl called it, had always been peaceful and stayed within their borders, essentially run by a democratic Parliament system, leaving the royal family basically demoted. Their primary function after that was simply to act pleasant while serving as a tourist attraction. The only logical solution was that if someone with a warped sense of righteousness usurped the throne and uprooted the entire system.

_Well, I guess this is what happens when justice takes a vacation for sixty-seven years._ Light shook his head and got up from the now half-soaked chair to stand by the air-conditioning in hopes that his clothes would dry soon.

But if Light really was flung sixty-seven years in the future, then Kira would surely be forgotten by now, reduced from a faceless god to a reference page in a dusty history novel. There were probably people his age in college doing reports on him and his unfinished work, probably bashing his goal for all it was worth, as naturally, the police would incite the media to mercilessly paint him as a villain.

'If we catch Kira, then he is evil. If he catches us, then he is justice.' The voice of his fallen rival still rung true. The worst part was that he was probably right. To an outsider, it would appear that Kira had lost.

"Great Britain? N-No, they disbanded in like, the seventeenth century after Napoleon Bonaparte trashed up the European nations, especially England. And after Washington's Rebellion finally ended, the royal family fled to their colonies and re-established themselves there, renaming their nation the Holy Empire of Britannia."

"Washington's rebellion?" Light paused, confused at Lydie's choice of words before finally getting it, "You mean, the _American Revolution_."

"No, I mean _Washington's Rebellion_. George Washington died in the battle of Yorktown, ending that little clown party and England got their colonies back."

"What are you talking about? The colonies won the American Revolution and became the United States of America, the world's most prominent superpower. And no, Napoleon Bonaparte lost to England in the Battle of Waterloo which led to his exile and the fall of his empire."

"Incorrect. Napoleon Bonaparte took over England and forced the aristocrats to relocate themselves to the colonies and because of Bonaparte's efforts; the Euro Universe was formed shortly after." Lydie looked at him with disdain and pulled out a new packet of chocolate pocky, ripping it open with her teeth and shortly after began noisily eating them.

Light sighed, knowing he was right but wasn't in the mood to give the girl a history lesson, so he started asking the questions that mattered.

"So anyway, I want to know, why do you seem perfectly fine after the time-traveling episode while I am physically exhausted?"

"This I have considered. What happened to you was pretty unique, as I have moved other people from timezone to timezone before, companions if you will, but when I travelled with them, I felt almost no resistance. However, you were a different matter."

"Resistance? What do you mean by this?"

"Resistence: term I coined for the 'time' it takes to arrive in a new timezone. I left your world a little before nine thirty. I know because while running from those men I passed through a subway system, and the clock there said 9:10. But as soon as we arrived in this world, it was a while after midnight, making a little over three and a half hours of resistance. I obviously irked the universe in moving you, so much so that it resisted my geass for an extended period of time. Keep in mind, I usually arrive at the next stop with only seconds, maybe a minute of lapsed time. It's clear you were tied to that time period for one reason or another. Maybe you were destined to play a pivotal role. Maybe you were supposed to be the ancestor of an amazing person. Or maybe you just fail at time-travel. Whatever the case, I ended that possibility when I transported you here and as payback, you were roughed up a little. On that same note, nothing I could have done in your time would have been important, so I arrived good and conscious. Fortunately for you, you seem to be recovering rather quickly, so I don't think you'll receive permanent damage."

_Pivotal role? Yes. Finally, something rational. I was Kira. And I was L, if only for a moment. I killed thousands of people and was probably scheduled to kill several thousands more. It's only natural for the forces of the universe to maintain their carved out path of least resistance and keep me in my own timezone. I might not have even considered that. Eh, figuring something like that out on her own proves that the girl is at least semi-intellectual, although this could be a problem. With Misa, my every order was obeyed without question. I can see that this girl is different. If I want to persuade her to take me back to my own time, I'll have to put up a damn good argument. So then, I'll give myself a day or two in this time period to recover, and then make an effort to convince her. If she is a nomad of time as she says she is, then taking me back to my own time period shouldn't be that big of deal on her part. But time-traveling is such a never-in-a-lifetime experience... before leaving I'd like to see the technology of the future up close._

"So, before doing anything strenuous you might want to take it easy for a while-"

"If you have the time, I'd like it very much if we explored this future Japan today-" Their responses to their own inner musings came out at the same time, and were as opposite as could be. And yet the girl looked relieved as she jumped up from the bed and started gathering her things together.

"Are you sure you can handle it?"

"I'm fine, Lydie. I'm tired, but I can still walk around as I please."

"I wasn't just referring to that. You're Japanese. Your eyes and hair make it obvious. The Britannians, the ones who conquered Japan, don't like the Japanese. They won't like you, which means you could get hurt further if you walk about in the city."

"I think I'll take my chances."

"So stubborn." The girl shook her head and pretended to be annoyed, but Light could see the pleased smile on her face. "Well, we might have to leave anyway, so let me get my purse and room keys and we can go."

"All right then." He replied, and stood up, wincing as his irritated muscles tried to ignore his pleas to move. The girl was back in only a few seconds, now with plain white ballet flats and red sunglasses on, a messenger bag with the tag still attached hung from her shoulder.

"How did you acquire money so fast? You managed to purchase a hotel room, some clothes, and food among other things in under twelve hours."

"Ah, yes. One useful skill I learned while time-travel: gambling, though I suck at everything except poker and chess."

"That's… certainly interesting." Light commented idly. Leaving their conversation to end at that, Light silently followed the girl as she navigated through the halls, down the stairwell, and out to the parking lot, though it was during this time Light realized he forgot to ask one very important question.

"I never did ask for your name."

The girl paused for moment, as if making up her mind if she wanted him to know her name or not. "Lydie." She quipped.

"Is there a last name with that?"

"Caprice. Lydie Caprice."

_Good. Now I can eliminate her if need be, but I'd like to avoid to avoid that route if at all possible. Time-travel is a very interesting ability and I'd like to learn about it as much as possible. Hmm, perhaps that sounded a tad suspicious, asking for her last name. Since we're merely acquaintances, in theory I'd have no reason to know that. Better say something to smooth that over._

"I didn't mean to pry, Miss Lydie. You knew my name so I just thought it was fair for you to tell me yours." Light told her as they walked out from the parking lot and onto the bustling sidewalk. Light arched his back and lifted his head up a bit to see over some of the taller Britannians, taking in as much of this future Japan as he could.

"Stop that." She barked, and sharply tapped his shoulder.

"What the hell was that for?" Light tried not to wince while he rubbed the place she hit him.

"Don't look too arrogant. Slump your shoulders a bit and look humble."

"For what reason?"

"You're an Eleven."

"... Right."

Light remembered Lydie's speech on racist Britannians and did as she said, looking at the ground and letting his muscles relax, catching glimpses of several pairs of feet. Feet covered by shiny black men's shoes, little pink penny loafers, white Mary Janes, brown tennis shoes, black combat boots, though these nicer shoes were much rarer than most of the foot traffic: worn flip-flops, dirty sandals, and sneakers with holes in them. He knew without looking up they were the shoes of Elevens, his 'kind'.

Bored with this, Light looked up while still keeping his head down. Sky-blue buildings stretched for what seemed like miles upwards with rows of them equally as long, the sun glinted off of the aqua-colored glass, occasionally gracing photos of terrorists rebelling against their Britannian tyrants. Most, to his dismay, stated either Executed or Captured, with only a few 'Wanted' written in red across their face. Back on the ground, scenes of violence, usually concealed in the shadows, especially when the wrath of Kira reigned during Light's time, were made public while the rest of the world simply ignored it and went about their daily business.

A dirty, lone boy stood crying in a nearby corner. A group of blonde men were beating up a Japanese man. Even a police officer, whom usually strived to protect the weak was hassling a young woman carrying a baby, eventually striking with his meaty fist, sending both her and the infant crashing onto the pavement. The hot late-summer sun only added to the confusion and organized chaos that went on all around him.

_Truly, this is a world without Kira. A world that should be cleansed._ Light thought, appalled at the world Lydie had brought him to. A world he could have prevented had he only stayed in his own time.

"Stop holding up traffic, worthless Eleven." A woman behind him roughly shoved Light out of her way, intentionally veering from her original path just to antagonize him.

Not expecting this attack and afflicted with sore limbs, Light ended up slamming into a metal wall and knocking over a trash can. He only got a glimpse of the woman, but it was enough to categorize her curly red hair and overly ornate purple and gold dress as one of them, the Britannians.

"I'd appreciate it if you didn't assault my butler, Ma'am." Lydie glowered at the woman before trotting over to help him up.

"I'm not your servant." He glowered at her and knocked away her hand to help him up. Obviously offended at this, she pouted and continued walking.

"Maybe not, but I don't think you'd like it if more people like her bothered you. Anyway, you wanted to come here so don't give me grief for helping you."

But just as Light got bearings, a strange scene unfolded in front of him. A motor bike, obviously on a leisure ride, swerved in the direct path of a speeding white truck which had odd-looking giant robots pursuing it. The truck driver, not wanting to be maimed by the machines on the account of some teenagers, turned into a nearby parking lot and ended up crashing into the front of a building.

All of this happened in only about five seconds, but shortly after, one of the dark-haired boys riding on the motorcycle immediately hopped up and went over to the truck, only for it to start up again and disappear into the subway system.

"Well that's something you don't see every day." Lydie chirped behind him and poked Light sharply in the back.

"Don't do that." He growled at her and walked a bit faster to show his indifference, though after looking back a few seconds later, he didn't see the little girl trailing behind him.

"Troublesome demon." Light sighed as he maneuvered his way through the crowd as best as he could and found Lydie staring up at the sky, seemingly paralyzed by what she saw there.

"Hey, what's up with you?" Light asked her, and attempted to push her along, the crowd, though she tried her hardest to resist him. A second later, the sound of something massive crumbling, followed by screams that were quickly cut off with gun fire came from somewhere nearby.

"Crap. Oh shit, this was what I was afraid of."

"What do you-"

"Knightmare Frames." She whispered and stuck a pocky stick in her mouth, "The Britannians... they're angry with someone hear and they're going to destroy this part of the city. Light, run. Now."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes. We have to leave this minute!" She spun around and took off in the other direction, expertly weaving through the swarms of people in front of her without even waiting for him. For an instant, he saw his old ally, Misa, in the girl who he entrusted his care to at the moment, but quickly dashed that out of his mind.

_No, this girl is headstrong, sure, but she's not Misa. This demon ice princess has a mind of her own and only fends for herself. Nonetheless, I'll make her my pawn. It's people like her who offer their full allegiance to causes that require their talents. This girl has talent, a talent I want named geass. Who knows what I could achieve if I had a power like that on my side in addition to the Death Note? I could even have her come back with me to 2007 to stay permanently. An unknown power, plus my Death Note, plus Misa's all-seeing eyes. Yes, if I play my cards right, Lydie just might be my most valuable ally._

...

Sword of Akasha, Pendragon, Motherland Britannia

...

"Little Brother, do you really think this is a good idea? Leaving the fate of our plan, and essentially the fate of the world to that empty-headed young fool?" A mere ten-year-old boy addressed the tall, barrel-chested man next to him with informality and scorn unfitting for his rank, only acceptable by their blood status and common goal.

"I see no immediate reason to interfere. Ever since _that accident_ seven years ago, C.C. abandoned the Geass Order and fled to god knows where." The older man struggled considerably to keep the venom of his loss out of his voice,

"But I'm a tad offended. Do you really think that about my son? In truth, I'm actually the most proud of him out of any of his siblings. The boy has chased a fairy tale since his late teens, managed to find it without so much as a solid lead, and has done us a favor by tracking it, or her as I should say, and has kept C.C. in confinement for our convenience. The worse that could happen would be for her to escape and give someone a geass, which, if you think about it, poses no threat anyway. There isn't much one man in an unstable Area can do about our plan."

"If you say so. But ever since late last night I've felt this... premonition, a bad omen of sorts that's been bothering me all day, like something is stirring, something that threatens us all. I can feel that further action may be required. Just in case, I want to go to Area 11 to keep watch over things if it pleases you, Little Brother."

"Of course, you know I'd never deny you any request. An extra pair of eyes and ears couldn't hurt, especially keen, immortal ones such as your own. I don't even have to ask you to watch for disturbances, especially ones pertaining to C.C. and geass."

"Naturally. I'll do my best."

"Don't you always?" The older man smiled down at his comrade as he turned around to leave, but as the boy walked further and further away, the man's smile descended into a scowl and behind his back he clenched his meaty fist.

_Yes, I will have a world without lies. A world without liars._ He dared a malicious gaze at the boy who he once trusted so much, but now only caused him pain, stress, and anger.

_We'll have our perfect world very soon, Marianne. I'm sorry I failed you once, and I swear I'll never let that happen again. Just you wait. After Big Brother brings back C.C., I'll destroy him and take his code, with his demise ending all of our misery. We're so close, nothing can stop us now._

...

I'll entice you to dream again in the morning


	3. Chapter 3: Vi Britannia Vendetta

**The Light of Justice and Lelouch of the Rebellion: Intertwined**

**Authors Notes:**

URRGHH! That moment when you fully edit a chapter and you save it but the site tells you to login! Grrr! That moment when you login and you misspell your complicated password and it asks you to authenticate your humanity with the hard to read words! THAT EVIL MOMENT WHEN YOUR PARENTS ABSCOND WITH YOUR LAPTOP RIGHT AFTER THE PREVIOUS EVENTS FOR FOUR DAYS STRAIGHT BECAUSE THEY DON'T LIKE YOU. Yeah. If the universe liked me, this would have been out on Thanksgiving Eve. But because of the events above, I was set back about a week, as editing a monster like this is a real pain in the ass.

Anyway… Guess what you guys? LULU IS HERE. No really. Go read my story.

...

**How dare you** even consider skipping my important notes below. I was obviously kidding. **Read** the nonsense below these lines of frivilousness (- Incorrect, heh-heh), then go look at my story.

I pay attention to detail. I research and overanalyze and do all this stuff to eliminate all real-world inconsistencies, plotholes, and silly typos. So it shouldn't surprise you that I have a deliberate Code Geass timeline inconsistency. Yes. I, in fact, slightly botched up the Code Geass timeline, but I only did this to accommodate Light's arrival to Code-Geass-Land in better fashion. What did I do for those of you who didn't notice? The original Code Geass timeline states that the rebellion of Celtic kings against the Roman Empire, which occurs fifty-five years before the beginning of the A.D. era, is the start of the A.T.B. calendar. However, I switched it up slightly by moving up that event one hundred and ten years into the future, or, at 55 A.D. The reason? I didn't want to over-complicate things by sending Light into, essentially, the past with more advanced technology than Light's time in the future. If I had stuck with the Code Geass timeline, then I would have very well sent Light to 1962 A.D. (2017 A.T.B.). If you're still confused, or I confused you more, then simply wait for the plot to unfold itself. Y'all can tell I LOVE flowery, unnecessary descriptions and that I won't leave anything important out.

QUESTION! Kay, so what do you call the Knightmare frame speaker system thing that allows people to communicate with people in other Knightmares/ outside the Knightmare/ whatever else? If you know the answer please tell me. I couldn't find the answer anywhere and I feel stupid putting 'Knightmare speaker system' everywhere all the time.

**Reviewzys!** They fill me with joy and happiness and eggs!

Asukaforever92: Yay! You make me nargle with loodleosity! Thank you dearly.

Lordban: I have no life, so putting chapters out is what consumes my time, and yes, as you are about to see Light will really screw over some of Lelouch's plans and cause havoc. And thanks for your delightful review.

I LOVE THIS TITLE, SO MANY V'S.

...

~9:58 a.m., September 20th, 2017~

Second Floor Sitting Room, Falconberry Mansion, Hibiya, Tokyo

...

**Chapter 3:**

_Vi Britannia Vendetta_

While terrorists schemed and a god awoke in a new land, a certain raven-haired, purple-eyed Britannian student and his best friend sat comfortably in chairs made from the finest oak wood and the most delicate silks that money could buy in a wealthy noble's home. Three Eleven maids were even summoned to continuously serve the two guests of honor delicious, high quality brews and fancy cakes.

The business was simple. A few nights ago, a Britannian noble overheard Rivalz boast about his best buddy Lelouch's prowess with chess. The nobleman, Sir Fred Falconberry, considered himself a professional at chess and refused to believe that a student could be as good as the boy said Lelouch was, which eventually lead to the two of them engaging in a 'my horse is bigger than your horse' argument.

This, at first harmless banter, ended up setting the terms of Sir Falconberry and Lelouch's match: that Lelouch only had twenty seconds to move per turn, and Sir Falconberry could freely move Lelouch's pieces and his own according how he saw fit before the match started, leaving it off to where Lelouch started out with the utmost disadvantage. The prize? Five thousand pounds. But despite these seemingly impossible odds, Lelouch gained the upper hand in no time at all after managing to swindle his opponent's queen.

"I believe that's check." Lelouch said as he moved his black pawn diagonally to take out the Britannian nobleman's king, who at the realization of what had just happened, started stuttering in sheer disbelief that he could've been beaten by a mere seventeen-year-old boy.

"And I believe that's five thousand pounds for us, Mr. Falconberry." Rivalz gestured towards the nobleman who was still noisily comprehending the fact that he lost.

"Come on, hand it over." Rivalz urged, at which the nobleman begrudgingly dished out the money and stormed out of the room without saying another word to the two of them.

Lelouch and Rivalz quickly followed suit and left after being shown out two of the maids, driving off on Rivalz' motorbike to their school, Ashford Academy, for their first class of the day. Well, the first class of the day they felt like attending anyway.

"Eight minutes and thirty-two seconds! Wow Lelouch, that's a new record." Rivalz gushed.

Lelouch's slightly shorter blue-haired best friend had never been good at chess, or any other skill games for that matter, and always found Lelouch's matches to be exciting, especially at the prospect of the 50/50 cash deal they'd agreed on: half of his friend's money just as long as he drove Lelouch to all of his matches. In this way they made a good team and hardly ever fought like most friends did.

"Sweet." Lelouch shrugged, not really caring so much about the specifics. It all turned out the same for him: just another win on another day, and it was as simple as that. Rivalz was often the one that set up appointments with the loaded Britannians; all he had to do was show up. "How much time do we have left, anyway?"

"Twenty minutes, which is barely enough to reach campus. It'll be a miracle if we get there before History starts."

"Oh, well then I guess we should just call it quits and head back."

"My thoughts exactly. But I wanna ask, why did you move your king first back there in that chess match?"

Rivalz was referring to how even with everything against him, Lelouch decided to move his king first, a very unlikely and potentially risky move. He only shrugged and gave his friend the same answer he always gave,

"If the king doesn't lead, how can he expect his subordinates follow?"

"Well, I guess that makes sense. Hey Lelouch-"

The sound of a large truck's horn sounded behind the pair, startling Rivalz, who swerved and tried to turn somewhere to get out of the massive vehicle's path. But in the truck driver's exasperation, he turned onto a different course, which was actually blocked off, sending it crashing into a nearby building.

"Um, was that our fault?" Rivalz asked sheepishly after the smoke cleared enough to see the building and truck's damage.

"I don't think so." Lelouch said with absolute placidity and got up off of the motorbike to survey the damage, only to find, to his annoyance, flocks of people standing around the scene of the accident, taking pictures and watching parts of the building crumble instead of taking the initiative and helping the people in the truck.

_Those people inside could be dead, but all that these stupid Britannians can do is sit there and react. _Lelouch thought angrily and ran over to see if the people inside the vehicle were okay.

"Lelouch! We're going to be late for class!" Rivalz called to him while he tore across the parking lot, but as far as Lelouch was concerned, school wasn't top priority at the moment.

"Hey, are you okay in there?" Lelouch tried to communicate to the people inside, but they seemed to be either unconscious or too injured to respond. Seeing a ladder on the side of the truck, he climbed up to see what the problem was.

"Hello? Can anyone hear me?" Lelouch hollered down into the truck's cargo area once he reached the top. But to Lelouch's surprise, the truck started up again at top-speed, sending Lelouch flying into the van and with it shutting the hatch at the top of the vehicle.

"Hey, stop! I'm in here!" Lelouch tried to yell, but amidst the confusion, nobody heard his cry for help.

And now, sealed in darkness with his only exit cut off, Lelouch found himself trapped in what he presumed to be the truck's cargo area, illuminated only by small punctures in the dull gray wall, bullet holes most likely, which only provided slight illumination for Lelouch's keen violet glare. Through the smothering blackness, only two things in the small room were visible: a gray canister about his size, sinister looking and covered with blunt spikes all over its top and sides, and a large machine covered by an equally massive tarp.

_Everything about this feels strange. First, why was the truck driver in such a hurry, so much so that whoever it was resorted to swerving off road like that, and then start back up again without caring about the damage they caused?_ Lelouch thought while waiting for his eyes to adjust to the darkness engulfing the tiny space he'd been thrown into, though the next thing he heard told him all he needed to know.

"Surrender now! We have you surrounded, mangy Eleven terrorists!" A voice, echoing from the speaker system of a Knightmare, ordered the van drivers from outside, and with it came shots of gunfire, the truck swerving erratically to avoid being hit. Lelouch blocked out the commotion around him and attempted to do what he did best: strategize.

_This isn't good. Not only am I trapped in here, but I'm trapped in here with terrorists of all people and being shot at. But all complaints and obvious statements are irrelevant now. I just have to find a way out... though judging by the lack of light, we're probably in some sort of tunnel, and the subway system is the only possibility since nowhere else in Tokyo will plunge you in darkness for this long. My guess is that the terrorists are trying to throw the Britannians off by going underground, as satellite won't work here and less Knightmares can chase them at a time. It's a nice strategy, though a speeding truck is hardly going to look conspicuous in a place like this. How do they plan on escaping?_ Lelouch was still confused, but was satisfied slightly in at least knowing where he was.

But still the most important piece of the puzzle remained missing. How would he get out? Back at Ashford Academy Lelouch had refined his skills in this area down to an art. It was necessary when you possessed an unfortunate lack of speed, stamina, and brawn like him and wanted to avoid looking stupid by not going to a class like P.E., where these skills that he so blatantly lacked would be put on display for every other student to see. Besides, Lelouch often used this extra time to go out and gamble some more, seeing it as a much more efficient use of his time. But Lelouch had a feeling escape from a closed-in truck would be a lot harder than escaping from gym class. He sat down next to the canister and began to explore his options.

_At this point, my cellphone is completely useless, as I'd probably get no service down here, and who could I call that can help me in a situation like this? And if the impossible happened and I managed to escape now I would have a choice in one of two deaths: being gunned down or trampled by the Britannian's Knightmare Frames or simply fall to my demise. And if I even if I tried to make contact with the terrorists, they'd more than likely kill me if only because I'm Britannian._ _So that's it then, all my options, and that means for now all I can do is hide here._

Lelouch decided and after hearing the whoosh of a door opening, ducked behind the canister next to him. The culprit turned out to be a girl with pinkish-red hair as bright as a crayon, who stepped into the cargo section and swiftly uncovered the veiled machine, which turned out to be nothing short of a Knightmare Frame. But what was really strange was that Lelouch had the feeling he'd seen the woman, at least sometime once before. Lelouch quickly dismissed that thought as he watched her board the Knightmare, an old Glasgow Frame, and after waiting for whoever it was driving to open the back wall, launched herself into the fight in a futile attempt to stop the Britannians pursuing them.

_What does one woman in one outdated Knightmare think she can do against the heavily armed Britannians? She's only prolonging the inevitable_. Lelouch thought, but right at that moment the truck violently crashed into something and jerked to a stop.

"Shit. What could have possibly happened?" Lelouch growled in annoyance as he fell over, leaving himself to wonder whether the terrorists actually made it their destination, but not for very long.

After a few seconds, one of the sides of the truck opened, revealing the canister and Lelouch to the soldiers deployed to look for the terrorists here, unbeknownst to him.

_Perfect, now if I can only escape without being detected, I might make it to my third period class._ Lelouch prepared to exit when out of nowhere a soldier jumped into the truck's cargo area, spin-kicked Lelouch in the face and shoved him to the floor.

"Damn Britannian!" Lelouch yelled in the soldier's face, wincing in pain.

"I've got you now, terrorist. I won't allow you to kill any more people." The soldier said.

"I'm not a terrorist!"

"Liar! The poison gas... you've hidden it somewhere, so where is it?" The soldier hollered, clearly irritated with him even though he wasn't even the one at fault.

"Get the hell away from me!" Lelouch barely managed to shove the soldier away, who suddenly relented and backed away a few steps, taking out a gun and preparing to shoot once he could get a good aim on his target. Lelouch too withdrew into the shadows, studying his opponent. The soldier, Lelouch noticed, was dressed from head-to-toe in gray and black protective gear, apparently to protect him from the non-existent threat of the poison gas, and blended into the dark perfectly.

Lelouch himself was equally as camouflaged with his midnight-black Ashford Academy uniform and dark-colored hair and eyes, yet in the darkness they stared each other down for almost a full minute before Lelouch finally spoke,

"Fool. Britannia was the one who made that poison gas. You say you don't want any more deaths? Then destroy the Britannian Empire! The Empire is to blame!"

"Lelouch?" The soldier ignored the other teen's ramblings and took off his mask, revealing the face of Lelouch's long-lost childhood friend, Suzaku Kururugi, his emerald green eyes and neat-looking brown hair looking surprisingly the same as it did seven years ago when they were both children. "It's me, Suzaku."

"Suzaku?" Lelouch's eyes widened in disbelief, especially at the fact that Suzaku, the _son of the Prime Minister of Japan_ had joined the _Britannian military_ of all things.

"What are you doing in the military?"

"What are you doing, conspiring with terrorists?"

But before either of them could reply, the canister next to the two of them opened spontaneously, briefly emitting light as the contents inside were revealed. A girl with waist-length green hair and amber eyes glowed along with the canister for a few moments before falling onto the floor of the truck's cargo compartment, refusing to do more than stare at her rescuers.

"A girl? But... what? The poison gas-" Suzaku said, temporarily rendered motionless in surprise. Lelouch, however, wasted no time in rushing over to her side,

"-Was obviously a cover-up." Lelouch finished his sentence for him and stooped down to help the peculiar-looking girl.

"Well, that's what we were told in the briefing." Suzaku muttered sheepishly and helped Lelouch undo her many bounds and hindrances when the lights in the subway tunnel all turned on at once and several Britannian soldiers dressed the same as Suzaku appeared.

"Filthy Eleven! Who authorized you to touch that?" The man farthest in the front, Suzaku's squadron leader from the sounds of it, yelled at his subordinate.

"N-No one, sir. But I was told the capsule contained poison gas." Suzaku got up from Lelouch's side and walked over to his superior.

"Poison gas, girl, or BLT sandwich, you had no business opening that capsule." The squadron leader was clearly about to say more until he spotted Lelouch next to the girl, "However, since you found the terrorist, I'll give you a second chance."

The leading officer took a small black object out of his pocket, a gun, and placed in Suzaku's hand, giving him one ultimatum,

"Prove your loyalty to Britannia by shooting that terrorist. If not, then you'll be declared a traitor and won't leave here alive."

Lelouch, who was hastily untying the rope that bound together the girl's ankles, stopped short and stared up at his childhood friend, who right now held Lelouch's fate in his hands. However, Suzaku wasted no time in replying,

"But he's not a terrorist. He's just a civilian in the wrong place at the wrong time." Suzaku turned around smiled at his best friend,

"And on my honor I refuse to shoot one of the people." But when Suzaku turned around to face Lelouch, he wasn't smiling back. The squadron leader took out a small pistol from his pocket and aimed it at his own comrade.

"Suzaku!" Lelouch yelled right as the fatal shot was fired, his best friend collapsing into a heap on the floor.

"Suzaku..." He whispered, enraged at the vile act that was committed.

"And that's what happens to traitors. Now how about the rest of you monkeys succeed where your comrade failed and shoot down that terrorist." The squadron leader commanded his men, and without hesitation they began aiming their pistols in his direction.

_Death by firing squad, the end terrorists in Area 11 usually meet_. Lelouch realized, not even bothering to count the amount of guns being pointed at him at the moment.

"This is quite the fitting death for a terrorist isn't? But you did well, I suppose, for a student anyway, but sadly your life ends here."

The squadron leader turned his gun on Lelouch, who made no effort to cower away, knowing that this one blow to head would be a lot less painful than taking dozens more poorly aimed shots, after which the men would simply leave him to die of blood loss.

However, the green-haired girl lowered her gag, which Lelouch had forgotten to untie, and stood between the officer and Lelouch,

"You mustn't kill him!" She yelled as her last words, the bullet that was meant to end Lelouch's life piercing the center of her forehead and falling to the ground in the same pitiful way that Suzaku had.

"Shame, orders were to keep her alive. Report this to our superiors: the girl was released from her capsule by the terrorists and unfortunately got killed in the crossfire between us and them, eventually resulting in the terrorist's demise. It's not promotion worthy, but it'll at least save our asses for now."

_No... Suzaku, and now this girl... am I to meet this same end? Helpless, nameless, just a casualty of war, or more accurately, of Britannia's greed! Nunnally! I'm so sorry!_

He mentally wished his dear blind, crippled younger sister farewell and prepared to meet his end, until the girl, miraculously still alive, grabbed his ankle.

What happened next was indescribable, a state of electrifying stillness that seemed to occur inside his own mind. Or it had to be, anyway, since the world simply didn't fade into black and white, and then alternately swirl with rainbow colors.

"You don't want it to end like this, do you?" A girl's voice said to him, even though he couldn't see her, or anyone else in his previous environment.

"What is this?" He inquired, puzzled at the utter emptiness and bizarre amount of colors and sensations that surged through and around him.

"It seems that you have a reason to live." She continued on, ignoring his question. But suddenly, without being told somehow knew it was that green-haired woman.

"The girl? But... it can't be. She's dead."

"If you had the strength, the power, you'd be able to live. Well, this is our contract: in return for my gift of power, geass, you must grant a wish of mine one day. If you accept, you will live as a human, with but one that's completely different: equipped with extraordinary abilities, you will live in a new life and by new rules, but, in turn, you will have to bear great loneliness. However, if you're prepared for all of this, then accept my offer."

_What choice do I have but to accept? I'm probably going to die either way._

"Very well then, I, Lelouch vi Britannia hereby enter the contract!" Lelouch felt like he was traveling at light speed through what appeared to be ancient memories, his left eye burning with the manifestation of his new geass.

But then as quickly as it happened, it was over. Opening his right eye while keeping his geass eye covered by his hand, Lelouch rose up slowly like the undead from his kneeled position on the floor, his new power seeming to dictate his actions for him, renewing his resolve, refueling his strength, and rekindling the fire of ambition in Lelouch's spirit.

"If I truly am about to die, please allow me to ask a few questions before I meet my end."

"Sure," The leading officer shrugged, "Just hurry up."

"Well then, how should a man that hates his own country live?"

"Oh, so you're some kind of philosopher, are you?" A random man with a gun spoke up behind the leading officer.

"So? What if I am? Why not shoot? Why even listen to me talk? By all accounts, I'm just an expendable pawn, worthless, best taken and fitted into the already complete mold of the previous generation. I'm fully replaceable. Or have you finally figured out that the only ones who should shoot are the ones willing to be shot at?"

"What is this talk of nonsense about trashing Britannia? Men, gun him down."

_I think not._

"Lelouch vi Britannia commands each of you to die in the name of your forgotten prince!" Lelouch grinned, striking a series of elaborate poses before issuing his first command with his geass. And with that, the squadron leader started laughing hysterically and pointed his gun to his temple.

"Yes, your majesty!" And all of his men following suit, the blood of their geass-induced wounds staining the walls, floor, and some even splattered on Lelouch's cheek.

The first few seconds, he was shocked that this power, this geass actually worked, but then the thin line of his mouth hardened into a smirk.

_Truly, with this power, I can put an end to Britannia's reign of terror._ However among the dead littering the ground, one figure stood out in particular, the mysterious waif with green hair who had given him geass. Lelouch quickly glanced around to make sure no one else was coming before kneeling down next to her broken body.

"I don't understand. Why me? Why then? All this was your fault anyway. Those men were looking for you, yet Suzaku had to be in this squadron, had to come here. Why didn't you give it to me before now? If you had given it to me as soon as you came out of that capsule, then Suzaku wouldn't have..."

Lelouch didn't even have the heart to finish his sentence, but shook his head and continued,

"No. That's false. I'm just thankful you gave it to me at all. Nunnally will be saved. I can continue my life. I can... yes, I can fulfill the vendetta I've always silently sworn to the both of us. But what did you want me to do with this power? A wish, was it, that you wanted me to fulfill? Well I'm sorry, I guess I'll never know will I?" Lelouch said, parting the celery green bangs on her forehead where the bullet hole could be seen, though oddly enough Lelouch noticed that it pierced through the center of a strange, red mark there.

_How odd._ He thought to himself when all of a sudden the adjacent wall burst open causing the already unstable underground tunnel to quake and rumble, the perpetrator revealing itself to be a Knightmare.

_Not another one of those guys._ Lelouch grimaced and waited for the pilot's reaction. Likely, if Lelouch tried to run, he'd be shot down without a second thought, as fleeing implied guiltiness of something, but if he just stayed put then the Knightmare pilot might very well give him a chance to lie out of this one.

"You there, what happened here?" The pilot, evidently a female, spoke through her Knightmare's speaker system, but paused to study him before asking, "And what is someone like you, a Britannian student of all people, doing in these parts?"

"Answer me, or else!" She wasted no time in firing a spray of bullets around him, the new holes in the wall behind him almost making a perfect circle around his silhouette, his hair whipping around his face from the brief gust of wind generated by the speed of the ammunition whizzing by him. Lelouch, however, wasn't intimidated in the slightest.

_All show and no meaningful talk. Isn't that just like the Britannians._ He muttered in his head while Lelouch activating his geass,

"Get out of here, this instant." He commanded her, though she only shouted down at him, enraged.

"You're telling me to get out of here? Just who do you think you are?"

_Ah, I guess it only works if I see the target directly. No matter, I'll just have to lure her out in the open where I can try again._ Lelouch realized and quickly came up with a convincing lie, one of his specialties,

"My name is Corban Procter, and my father is a duke." Lelouch said while raising his arms in a stance of mock surrender.

"I have an ID card in my pocket if you don't believe me, and after you confirm my identity I'd like to request your protection."

And in as little as five seconds, Lelouch could already hear the sounds of the machines powering down while the woman ejected herself out of the Knightmare.

_Well that was easy enough_, Lelouch thought with a victorious grin.

"Keep your hands up. I'll take the card out of your pocket." The woman said after she jumped from her pilot seat onto the ground. However, the second she made eye contact with Lelouch, he activated his geass with the command,

"Give me your Knightmare." The results were instantaneous.

"Of course," The woman said, her stern facial expression melted into a blank one as she tossed him her key, "The code is 89R-2D7."

"Thank you. Now I'd like you to forget that this whole incident ever happened." Lelouch nodded and boarded her Knightmare, driving away without a second to spare, leaving the Britannian woman to wonder where she was and what she was supposed to be doing.

...

Military Hospice Camp, Shinjuku

...

"No, Lloyd, I refuse to allow it. The boy just got shot in back hardly even an hour ago and to stick him in a Knightmare now wouldn't be safe, for him or the machine. And what if he doesn't want to? What are you going to do about that?" A woman seemed to be in the middle of harshly rebuking someone when Suzaku Kururugi slowly descended from his onslaught of drugs and back into reality.

"I'm sure he won't mind. In fact, I bet he'd probably be honored. Elevens don't really get the chance to do anything important, besides, all he's doing is testing it for us. He doesn't have to engage in combat. In fact, I'd rather he didn't. If he proves to be no good then there'll be no ejector seat to save him." Lloyd said.

"But that doesn't mean you can just throw his life away just for some data. Why don't we just wait until he recovers completely and then ask his permission? Or better yet, we can pack up and wait for a different time to test it. No one told you it had to be today."

"No, no, that just won't do. Why put off until tomorrow what we can do today? How about I just wake him up so we can find out now." The man, Lloyd apparently, began to sharply poke Suzaku's face.

"Rise and Shine!" He called out to Suzaku in a sing-song voice.

"Stop that!" The woman sighed, yanking Lloyd's hand away, exasperated with her co-worker's behavior. Suzaku's eyelids opened slowly, fully awake now from the noise of the commotion around him.

"Oh, good morning, Kururugi-kun!" A man with lilac-colored hair and blue eyes, magnified by large-lensed glasses stood next to Suzaku's bed, the strange man's face only inches away from his own.

"Ah!" Suzaku Kururugi shot up with surprise and quickly glanced around at his unfamiliar surroundings.

All around him, people in crisp white uniforms flitted about like bees, attending to several patients laid on stretchers, which he noticed were similar to his own. But looking at all this activity combined with Suzaku's recent blood loss and the overpowering stench of cleaning solvents quickly gave him a headache.

"Huh? What, where am I?" He grimaced in pain as he felt the tight bandage that covered most of his torso, wishing he could adjust it to move a bit more comfortably.

"In Shinjuku, although if it weren't for us, you'd probably be up there by now." The man said and pointed up to the ceiling. A slight woman with purple hair came and stood beside the man and gave him a bit more detailed description,

"Yes, you are in Shinjuku, right beside Prince Clovis, so you'll be safe here. You were found not too long ago, half-dead in a subway tunnel. One of his majesty's generals sent a team out to figure what became of your group, and of course, to continue searching for the poison gas, but it seems that you were the only survivor of the people that were found, all killed from shots in the head." The woman shook her head sadly and took out a white handkerchief.

"But don't thank us for helping you; it was this thing here that saved you." The woman said as she unwrapped the silk cloth, revealing a gilded pocket watch.

The glass had shattered from the bullet's impact and didn't work anymore. In fact, it hadn't worked for several years now, but Suzaku carried it around with him anyway, the memory of just who this pocket watch belonged to sent a renewed pang of sadness through him.

"I'm afraid it's broken, Suzaku. Do you still want it back?"

"Yes, it's very important to me." Suzaku said and picked it up, placing it in his pants pocket for safe-keeping.

"Is Lelou-" Suzaku was an inch from asking these people about his childhood friend's whereabouts, not to mention, a certain best friend that had been a 'dead' prince of Britannia for seven years. That would have ensured him a one-way trip to the mental institution for sure if he'd finished his sentence.

"What's the situation over there, now?" Suzaku barely managed to recover his error.

"As far as the poison gas, we have yet to receive word of its recovery, however the military have been mostly focused on stomping the rebel resistance in that area than searching for it at the moment."

"I see." Suzaku was about to ask more, but the man interrupted him,

"Private Kururugi, do you have any experience in piloting a Knightmare Frame?"

"What? Of course not. Honorary Britannians aren't allowed in the Knightmare Corps."

"But what if, say, we allowed you to test one?"

"... What do you mean? Wouldn't that break some sort of taboo against Elevens piloting Knightmares?" Suzaku said, puzzled that these people would even ask him such a thing.

"True, but we actually aren't a division of the military, so their silly rules and regulations don't apply to us."

"If you aren't in the military than how is it you own a Knightmare? If this is some sort of joke, it's not very funny. You could be penalized for that, and I could get imprisoned."

Suzaku was being rude, he could tell. And he could be the one imprisoned or worse for a remark like that, especially to the people who just saved his life. But fortunately for him, the man disregarded it and continued,

"Kururugi-kun, there's no need to be so defensive. Cecile and I are very much legitimate, and the head of the Engineering Corps at that. It's our job to create Knightmares and new generations of technology, but I've got a certain Knightmare that just got finished recently, but we need to run some tests to make sure it works okay. It was actually supposed to be tested by someone else, but oh no, everyone simply had to go terrorist-stomping today, as if trifle matters like that are more important than my beautiful machine." Lloyd huffed with distaste.

"Yes, Suzaku, would you be so kind as to try it out for us?" The woman, Cecile apparently, smiled indulgently at him.

_Well, when she says it like that, I'd be heartless to reject..._ Suzaku thought about the green-haired girl and Lelouch, who were probably hiding somewhere, waiting for the battle to die down, the battle that was solely caused by those thieving terrorists. How could he refuse? If he simply killed all of the enemies, then he could possibly search for them afterwards.

_This is my chance to save them, so how could I possibly pass up this chance? All these Britannians really want is some data, anyway, it's not like they're trying to make me to do something I lack the strength to make happen. And they seem so nice..._

"It would be my pleasure to test your Knightmare Frame, Miss Cecile." Suzaku bowed his head with his right arm crossed over his chest, his brown hair spilling over his face, hiding his eager smile.

...

Downtown Shinjuku Ruins

...

Hidden inside an office building on the verge of collapsing, Lelouch considered his options, looking at a detailed map of the area, he carefully planned out his next set of actions.

_Well, Clovis obviously intended the girl to be a secret, so calling in reinforcements to find her would be risky, as men close to him would expect an explanation, something he'd probably not be willing to give, so there's a good chance that he won't send out a colossal barrage of infantrymen, but it's not like I have a way out of this either. If I attack I'll be instantly shut down, and if I try and flee the scene, well, I still wouldn't make it out alive. Abandoning this Sutherland just means abandoning protection from the gunfire and flames, and if Clovis ordered a massacre I'll just be killed, yet if I try and take Knightmare with me out of here I'll stand out too much and be instantly pursued since Sutherlands don't exactly belong in the metropolis area._ At that moment, Lelouch spotted the Glasgow from the terrorist truck he accidentally boarded being pursued by two Sutherlands.

_Doesn't she know that taking on the Britannians by herself is nothing short of suicide?_ Lelouch wondered and watched the scuffle from afar, waiting for the inevitable fatal blow that would finish off both pilot and machine of the Glasgow when a crazy idea suddenly struck him: What if he could fight the Britannians? Not only that, but fight them and win, using this resistance group? It certainly was a tempting thought, knocking those arrogant Britannian nobles down a few pegs by beating them with their own dogs. It was a pretty picture, he could begin to exact out his revenge while allowing the terrorists theirs. It was a win-win situation.

_Perhaps they're the only hope I have, and desperate times call for desperate measures. Maybe, if I help them win this, I just might make it out of here alive._

"Go to the western exit and board the nearby train tracks." Lelouch told a frustrated and outmatched Kallen Kouzuki who was running on the last bits of her energy filler. Startled by the unfamiliar voice, Kallen yelled back,

"What? Who is this? How do you know this frequency?"

"That doesn't matter right now, but if you want to live then trust me."

"What makes you think-" Kallen was interrupted by one of the Sutherlands firing a Slash Harken at her Glasgow's left arm, cutting it completely off and dragging her backwards some, making her officially weaponless and bringing her closer to her pursuers.

"A-All right," She replied after a moment's hesitation, going in the direction the voice specified and jumping on the tracks, her Glasgow's metal land spinners easily able to skate along the sides of the tracks, "Now what do I do?"

"Because you trusted me, I'll help you win. Now jump on top of the train."

"Got it." She said and leapt over it, the Sutherlands behind her momentarily confused.

"Get that Eleven!" One Knightmare forcibly stopped the train and called out to the one trailing him, only for it to be destroyed by its own weapon of choice, Slash Harkens.

"What is this?" The single Knightmare left glared in the direction the Slash Harkens came from, and realized it was a Sutherland, which could mean one of two things: there was a traitor among their ranks, or the terrorists had Knightmares.

But in his moment of distraction, the Glasgow came up behind him and was about to deliver to him a fatal blow before the Britannian inside ejected, humiliated, and was determined to get revenge.

"Thank you, but how did you get ahold of a Sutherland?" Kallen tried to ask the man who'd just essentially saved her life, only to receive no reply.

_I don't see any more Britannian Knightmares, which leaves me no reason to stay here, if I do, then I'm only asking to get attacked. The Glasgow is faring horribly as it is. Best to let the others know I'm okay._ Kallen reasoned and after making sure no one was followed her she headed over to their main camp and ejected from her Knightmare. Though and after mere seconds of leaving her machine she spotted some of her resistance comrades.

"Kallen!" Their leader, Kaname Ohgi shouted with relief to see her safe and in one piece. "I wasn't sure you'd make it out of there alive."

"You wouldn't believe who helped me back there-" Kallen started to explain the mysterious voice that helped her escape when but then Ohgi's hand-held transmitter emitted a voice,

"Are you the resistance leader?"

"Um, yes."

"Then you and your men go to the derailed train. Everything inside is a present to you, tools, to win this fight. If you wish to be victorious, then listen to me." And much to the rebel's surprise, the train's cargo cars were filled with Sutherlands and energy fillers.

"Amazing!" They stared in wonder at the novelty Knightmare Frames

"How did he get so many?" Kallen wondered aloud.

"You are all free to use these things that I have given you, the Sutherlands especially will be some of our most valuable assets. I'd like everyone with Knightmare piloting experience in one of them. Except for you, woman in the Glasgow, remain in there. Those Sutherlands don't suit you. Please be sure to tell all of your men to board their Knightmares as quickly as possible and I'll be relaying more orders in fifteen minutes." The voice promised and turned off his transmitter.

"Well then. This guy here offered us Knightmares, a real chance to fight back against the Britannians. We'll do as he says... for now. Saddle up and prepare for orders within the time alotted." Ohgi said, semi-doubtful about the own orders he'd been given, though it'd be nothing short of moronic to pass up brand-new Sutherlands, even if they didn't know who had given them to his team.

"Understood." Kallen said, and after ten minutes, her Knightmare was fully charged, and Kallen even had gotten the chance to get a drink of water, hopping back inside and ready for a new set of orders.

Not even a kilometer away, Lelouch lay concealed inside a different building overlooking the terrorist's camp enshrouded in trees.

The older teen sighed, pleased with the high possibility of survival and yet pressured to execute this game of his perfectly, because if not than it'd be other's lives he'd be lying down on the line besides his own.

_So far things are going well, though my greatest challenge is still ahead of me: winning. I'm betting my life on this game, and others too, so that is my only option now. _Lelouch thought, ejecting himself from his Knightmare to stretch his stiff muscles for a bit, though as he leapt off of the Frame and caught a close-up glimpse of the horrors that lay around him, Lelouch felt a renewed sense of urgency fill him.

_These people... all dead because of Clovis. Suzaku, wherever his body may be will be discarded and will rot into the ground without ceremony or thought given, as will everyone else who died today. It's sickening, as I'm sure none of these people had anything to do with Clovis' project or terrorism._ Lelouch looked around, and for the first time saw that he had nestled his Knightmare in an apartment building. An apartment building that was actively used.

While what looked to be a living room was deserted, traces of life remained. A glass of clear liquid, most likely water, sat undisturbed on a table in the farthest corner, so recently set out that Lelouch could see diminishing ice cubes floating on the top. The person who set it there obviously hadn't expected a massacre today.

On the wall next to it a picture of Clovis, smiling as arrogantly and boastful as ever while holding a red rose.

_Funny how that'd be here._ Lelouch wondered in his head, as judging by the dilapidated state of the building and simplicity of the apartment layout that the tenants were most likely Elevens, but as he took a few steps closer he saw that the picture wasn't a decoration, but served some purpose. Purpose as a dartboard. Lelouch chuckled to himself as he saw four black darts pierce various places on his older half-brother's face. Well_ that seems about right._

Lelouch nodded at this and continued to observe the room, seeing stacks of graded papers, spiral notebooks, and classic CD's before finally stumbling on something he could admire: a chessboard. And next to it was a small white box containing all of the pieces. Without thinking anything about it, Light scooped up the little box and board and headed back to his Knightmare.

_Sad to say, the people who lived here won't need this anymore. In any case I need to get back to my Knightmare, as the terrorists might be done regrouping by now. _Lelouch thought and boarded his Sutherland, and to his surprise, as he was setting up his new chessboard the resistance leader responded,

"Um, sir, this is Ohgi. All of my men are ready for battle."

_Wonderful, this is starting to come along nicely_. Lelouch grinned in anticipation, eager to command his troops.

"Excellent. But what about you? Is this Sutherland similar to any other Knightmares you've piloted before?"

"Yes, but they were no where near as new and as nice." He admitted before asking, "But before we begin this operation, I want to know who you are. Can you at least tell me your name?"

_Of course, I should have known they'd want private information like this, especially since they don't know where I am, nor my face or intentions. While I want them to trust me, I can't exactly tell them I'm a Britannian student, as most of these men and women are probably older than me, and Japanese, so they on't take kindly to my orders. I'll just have to make something up._

"I'm sorry, but I can't divulge to you my full name. At the beginning I was able to tune into this frequency without difficulty, so it wouldn't be too far-fetched to assume it could be monitored now. If you would like to address me, then call me... Zero."

"Zero?" Ohgi repeated, the dissatisfaction in his voice apparent.

"Yes. I'd much rather prefer something anonymous and untraceable than my actual name. For your safety as well it'd be a good idea to employ code names as well. Anyway, I've already mapped out our formations during your group's downtime, so just listen to me and you will most surely win."

"... Right." Ohgi said.

"So are you ready for this, P-1?"

"Damn right I'm ready. Tell me where to go and I'll kick ass."

"Good to hear." Lelouch had to suppress a chuckle before resuming orders, "First, there are two enemy Sutherlands coming, shoot them down. They'll be caught off-guard and won't be able to react in time."

"Okay, everyone ready your weapons." Ohgi ordered his men.

"Are you serious? You're really going to take directions from some random guy? What if it's a Britannian trying to lead us into a trap?" A man named Tamaki scowled nearby.

"If he was trying to do that, then why would he have given us Knightmares?" Ohgi muttered, though his irritation was quickly forgotten as he saw the aforementioned enemy Knightmares approaching in the distance.

"Fire!" Ohgi yelled, a barrage of ammunition piercing through the Knightmare and killing the Britannians pilots inside.

"P-1, P-2, P-5, fire your weapons at three o' clock." The voice said again.

"Yes, obey that voice!" Ohgi said and followed his directions. Three more Knightmares exploded. For about ten more minutes, orders similar to that were given to the terrorists, and several more teams of Knightmares were destroyed.

"Truly, as long as these terrorists continue to obey more commands, the outcome is clear." Lelouch couldn't help but laugh in amusement at how easily his enemies fell.

"R-2, fire your harkens at that helicopter." He said, the Knightmare he assigned this codename to attacked the remaining air forces Clovis had summoned.

"B-7, use armor-piercing round." He ordered, destroying a truck.

"N-1, N-6, N-8, continue to advance." He told a group of several Knightmares who rapidly fired at a squadron of Knightmares.

"Worthless Elevens!" The Britannians inside the Knightmares swore as their machines exploded.

Kilometers away, the Third Prince Clovis la Britannia stood over his massive electronic map in rage, "Why are we losing so many men? Cursed terrorists! They must be listening in on us! Haven't I told you twice now to change our frequency!"

"But it has been changed, your highness, three times now."

"Well then change it again!" He yelled at his subordinate in frustration.

"Your highness, try to calm yourself. Any rash judgments now will simply end up in failure. And that girl in the wrong hands, terrorist ones no less, could spell trouble." A large black man gently reminded him, careful to whisper around Clovis' lesser men.

"Yes, I know." The prince sighed, lowering his accordingly before pausing to regain his composure, afterwards raising his voice for his men to hear, "The enemy Knightmares seem to be all concentrated in this central location. With this knowledge, we can surround them and cut off any escape routes." He said, a certain fire returning to his eyes with the words, "We'll crush them."

"Well, all I can do now is wait for the Britannian's reactions, as there are several ways the enemy can move now." Lelouch said, twirling his chess king, when noticing the sheer number of Knightmares all homing in on the location of his men.

"Shame, Clovis. I expected more from you, but now you have pretty much sealed your fate." Lelouch shook his head and spoke to the Glasgow girl,

"Q-1, do you see any Knightmares approaching?"

"No, none at all."

"Good, thank you." He told her before switching his line over to Ohgi, "All right, relay Plan 3." Lelouch commanded him, and simply waited for the enemy to fall.

"What? The enemy isn't there?" Clovis said, his eyes widening in shock. But unknown to them, the rebels had went into the subway tunnels, the same ones Lelouch had escaped from only moment before, moving right below the Britannia's feet.

"And that, dear brother, is check." Lelouch said and swiftly swiped his black king along the white piece side, causing each of the opposing pawns to noisily plummet to the floor of the cockpit.

"Fire!" Lelouch gave the signal, and all at once, LOST messages replaced the Knightmare's IFF signals on Clovis' map.

"You see, by going underground, I simply had my men strike precisely below where you were standing, eliminating all of your forces, as I already commanded my men to destroy any air support, assuring my victory." Lelouch said with a smirk, that quickly gave way into a chuckle, which escalated into hysterical laughter, his eyes dilated wide as if he were drunk. Drunk on the drug known as warfare, as the blood of many powerful, successful kings and ruthless commoner champions alike surging through his head at a rapid flow, enriching him with adrenaline.

"I can do it! I can really do it! With my geass..." He said, standing up in his Knightmare, "I CAN CRUSH BRITANNIA!"

...

Shinjuku Outskirts

...

_I can do it... I can do it... Just a little further... I have to get out of Shinjuku so I can rest safely._

Exhaustion weighed Light down like an opaque curtain while he ran, he and Lydie had decided to flee on foot from the Shinjuku massacre, unable to find another mode of transportation before the Knightmares begun to lay waste to everything and everyone. The only reason why they made it out anyway was because of their closeness to the edge of the ghetto.

"Stop!" Light called out to Lydie, who seemed to be running with endless energy, propelled by some unknown force that put Light's longer legs and superior muscle mass to shame, which on any other day would have easily outmatched her childish skip and twig-like limbs.

"No, we can't, we have to leave now!"

"We're not even in Shinjuku anymore, I see no reason for us to continue exhausting ourselves." Light said between breaths as he sat down in the dust, not even caring if he got his clothes dirty while Lydie scoffed at his behavior,

"Do you realize you're wearing white and khakis and sitting in dirt?"

"I'm aware."

"Then get up, I can't be seen with someone who doesn't take pride in the way they look." Lydie said and started prodding Light's back with her foot. For anyone else, this little irritation would be quickly resolved by a firm command to stop and moving away from the culprit just enough so that they'd leave him alone, but the moment he and Lydie made contact, that repulsive static energy passed through them same as before, which for some reason completely unnerved the amber haired teen.

"Would you kindly stop." He snapped at her and pounded his fist into the ground to keep it from pummeling her face.

_Composure, Light._ He reminded himself and took a few deep breaths. _Why is it this girl keeps on getting me worked up? What is it about her that keeps me from playing my part correctly?_

"One, two, three, four-"

"Could you please do that silently, I'm trying to relax." Light glared up at the blonde.

"Oh, look at that, I just lost count, so I guess I'm going to have to start all over again." Lydie drawled in a sing-song voice and continued counting aloud again.

"Whatever." Light rolled his eyes and stood up, surveying the environment which mostly consisted of trees and old, run down factories that lined the edges of the now-ruined ghetto of Shinjuku.

_Why would any government, regardless of how corrupt, destroy part of its own colony's capital? Is there a reason, or are the Britannian royalty really that mad as to destroy the lives of the Elevens only to reinstall fear in the hearts of the people they oppress? This world is certainly cruel, but interesting. _Light paused and chuckled for a moment before continuing again,

_Well, not any worse than my time, the only difference here is that criminal affairs are more out in the open, making it easier to take sides, especially here in the face of civil unrest. In my time, there was no good team and no evil team, only people with goals and ambition. Individuals would do evil acts for their own gain, and then different individuals like me would work for divine judgement. I suppose it's best to simply ask Lydie for the answers to questions of this sort, as she seems to be quite knowledgable of this world. _

"Why were the, um, Knightmares destroying that part of the city?"

"Who knows. The Britannian royalty are a really capricious bunch. Probably to kill 'terrorists' or whoever else felt like pissing them off."

"Britannian royalty… so these are descendants of England's royalty? You mentioned earlier that the English aristocrats relocated to their colonies."

"I… assume so…" Lydie gnawed on her pocky thoughtfully, though her eyes stayed focused on the path in front of her.

"So then that makes Britannians Caucasian and the Elevens Japanese, I presume."

"Predominantly. Elevens are Japanese, no question about the that, but not all Britannians are white. When the English took over, they promised any devoted loyalists to the crown a position of nobility, so the racial lines were blurred as people with different backgrounds pledged their allegiance to the mainland."

"…Interesting. So you're a Britannian, then?"

"That is correct."

"So from what I can see, there are two sides here: the Britannians, who like the English rulers in their place, and the Elevens, who don't appreciate being conquered and want their freedom back."

"Pretty much."

"So… which side are you on?"

"Enough with all of the questions, Light! What do I look like to you, an encyclopedia?" She snapped at him suddenly, as if he'd just woken her up from a daydream, though she went on in a more docile tone,

"Unless you're in the process of launching a campaign to take over the world, then you have no reason to know the inside scoop on politics and the history here. Besides, we're getting pretty close to downtown Tokyo. If we keep on talking about risky topics like these we'll receive a lot of funny looks."

Light was so focused on simply keeping his feet moving forward that he didn't even pay attention to where he was, but Lydie was right. They were getting very close. The skyscrapers, which looked like a straight row of toothpicks thirty minutes ago, were much taller and intimidating up close. But now the two of them were next to an imposing white building that had a blue flag with several animals on it pinned high to the side of it, though Light's admiring time was abruptly cut short with a high-pitched outburst from Lydie,

"What the hell? Who… _breaks windows_ or whatever this nonsense was from and doesn't pick it up? Lousy Britannians, what a bunch of no-good-" She muttered a short stream of curse words while stepping around the broken glass and even kicking some in her frustration. Curius to where it could have come from, Light looked around for a moment before glancing upwards and saw a series of large broken windows where a small figure stood inside on, its back was turned to the hazard and was only inches away from falling out.

"What is that person-" And then the figure stepped back one last time and fell. Instinctively, Light stepped over a few meters and caught him together with Lydie, though the two of them plus the person collapsed on contact: the hundred-meter-momentum the man's body gained was too much for Light's exhausted arms, and Lydie was not a very strong girl to begin with.

"Stupid moron fell out of a window, what the fuck?" Light muttered while rubbing the back of his head and stood up, though Lydie was the first to notice what was wrong about the entire situation,

"Holy shit… whoever did that must have really wanted to make sure this guy wouldn't last the day." She gasped, horrified, and pointed to the blood flowing from the person's wounds.

The person, evidently a man that they'd saved, had been shot numerous times, with blood pouring from his chest, left arm, and right shoulder, the crimson liquid soaking through his solid white shirt, which Light noticed was made of very nice, silk like material. After getting over the shock of this, Light continued to study the man. He had messy blonde hair that obscured the top half of his face, delicate rosy skin that was quickly losing its healthy red tinge, and with his long legs and torso, easily looked to be about six feet tall.

The only thing that told Light he was still alive was the slow rise and fall of his bleeding chest.

_What sort of twisted person would do this? Who in their right mind would shoot a guy like that and push him out of a window?_ Light thought, looking in the direction the man fell, though he didn't see any visible perpetrators basking in their accomplishment.

"Unfortunate as this is, Lydie, we best be heading on now."

"But… what? Why? He's hurt, Light, we need to get him to a hospital as quickly as we can."

"Don't be foolish. If we linger here too long, we'll look more suspicious of the crime than the actual culprit. And with mention of the culprit, it will only be a matter of time before he comes down here to inspect his work, and since we're witnesses of his crime he may try and kill us."

"But we can't just leave him here to die! When I came to this time period, did I leave you, an Eleven, with no food, money, or explanation in an unfamiliar world? Did I abandon you there when I very well had better things to do then to care for someone who'd be utterly useless in helping me on my mission? And what about when those men were chasing me back in your world? Nothing stopped you from helping me then, and I helped you here as well. Why should we forsake this man who needs our help? And don't you remember? If things get dangerous, I can always teleport us here to somewhere else."

"You'd really launch that man through time in his condition?" He asked bluntly, standing up and folding his arms, waiting for his partner to see the truth of the matter.

"Well…"

"What's more, if that bullet in his chest didn't hit a major organ, it'll cause the man to die of blood loss before we can do anything for him. I'm sorry, Lydie, but it's reality."

And from those heavy words brought a long, awkward silence between the two of them. Lydie stared at the man's chest, which still feebly moved to accommodate his struggling lungs beneath the surface. Light nonchalantly checked his watch and looked around to make sure that no one was watching them.

"Look, I know what it feels like to be abandoned, left behind by those who you thought were your friends and family, and left for dead. I… I can't… on my conscious, I can't leave this man here. No one deserves to go through what I faced. Please… please Light, help me carry him." She said, refusing to take no for an answer.

Damn persistent woman. She just won't face the facts… silently accusing me of betraying my alter ego Kira, mocking me with my own sense of justice. Doesn't she know there's a difference between a brilliant rescue and a lost cause? But… she's my only way out of this place. I need her to transport me back to 2007. And I doubt she'll be willing to do so if I don't help her. Unfortunately, I'm going to have to humor her antics for now.

"All right then, I'll help you. Just as long as you promise not to make picking up strays a habit." Light relented, pretending to let go of the matter completely, and the two supernaturally blessed teens walked onwards, between of the two of their combined efforts lay an equally rare sort of man.

...

Shinjuku Military Headquarters

...

"Who is this? Who am I fighting? … Can he read my thoughts? Is he monitoring me? Who... Who is this monster that looms in front of me…"

Clovis stepped away from his map and men, clutching his throat as if he could already feel the executioner's blade cutting through it, for even allowing terrorist groups like this to form, for failing at the hands of these mere Elevens, for attempting something as presumptuous as Code-R. Then, for what felt like the hundredth time, that Knightmare Specialist Earl Asplund's message appeared on the map screen,

"Good morning yet again, my prince. Awaiting permission to deploy our new project. As you know, the Lancelot's capabilities-"

"I know already! You've been telling us about how wonderful your damn machine is all morning now!" Clovis snarled, before quickly regaining his composure and placidity, sounding once again like a prince instead of a bratty little boy who just lost.

"But the terrorists... I have to admit, they've outsmarted us so far. Whoever is commanding them is no laughing matter. Can that little toy of yours... can it win the battle, Asplund?"

"My Prince, please call my beautiful, first-ever built seventh-generation Knightmare Frame... the Lancelot." The lavender haired man smiled with delight.

...

Shinjuku Military Hospice Camp

...

Suzaku, just a wall away in the next room, was still hardly believing his luck. He, an Honorary Britannian, had been selected to pilot the most advanced Knightmare Frame in existence. Although he knew that this certainly wasn't a permanent fix, it still excited him that he had been chosen for such an opportunity. Currently, the Japanese equivalent of a prince was seated inside of the exquisite machine, staring at the glossy cover of the Lancelot manual while running his long fingers across the shiny keyboards, knobs, and switches absentmindedly, already done reading. In truth, Suzaku was too excited and apprehensive to be laying about reading about the Knightmare when he was but a breath away from actually experiencing it.

_I'm probably one of the first, no, the first person to ever pilot this thing... maybe even the first Eleven authorized by Britannians to use this. But as soon as I go out there and make sure all of the controls work, Lloyd and Cecile said I have to come back to the hanger and give this back. After that, this beautiful machine will be carted off to the mainland for the use of privileged Britannians. Or that's what should happen, anyway..._

Suzaku contemplated what to do next, now that he had a tool to change the tide of this petty rebellion. First and foremost, he was concerned for Lelouch, his long-lost best friend, and the mysterious girl that was being transported in a capsule. He knew that there was still a battle out there, and that they were still stranded underground, avoiding the angry Britannians and trying to stay out of sight until the battle cleared, that is, if they were still alive. But Suzaku forced himself to not think of the negative, as there was still hope.

_If I stop all of the terrorists, then the battle will be over and at least the two of them can escape, though I don't know if Lloyd and Cecile will be too happy with me using their pet project for my own goals, but... it has to be done. I have to have to save those two, I have to help Prince Clovis win this battle, and I want to show this world just what I mean, that violence is never the answer, problems can be solved through rational agreements, and that cooperation with Britannia is the key to peace. This may be just a tiny fight in an unrecognized rebellion, yet I can't just let this opportunity slip by._

Suzaku stretched his restless muscles as much as the Knightmare cockpit allowed his five foot nine profile to protract, and even when he blinked Suzaku could see the silver imprints of the many buttons across the back of his eyelids. But that only made him smile more. Suzaku only wished he had a camera, as silly as that sounded, but he wanted to capture this moment forever, nestled in the quality and novelty of the machine- two things he hadn't experienced in roughly seven years.

But, thankfully, before Suzaku's mind could torture him with memories of these, his two new 'bosses' came in, Lloyd in front skipping about the hangar and carrying something in a bowl while Cecile followed much more calmly behind him. Lloyd spoke to him first through his transmitter,

"Good news, Kururugi-san! Can you guess?"

"Um, I can pilot the Lancelot now?" Suzaku guessed, seeing it as the only reason for such celebration on the rather eccentric scientist's part.

"No, silly boy, I've got pudding!" Lloyd gleefully divulged before Cecile interrupted,

"In other news, you can test-run the Lancelot now, just so long as you promise not to overwork yourself, as you are in pretty critical condition as it is. Though if you feel pain, report back here immediately as it means your drugs are wearing off and that could be a problem for you if not treated in time. But… I still don't feel good about this… you can still say no, as I don't think you're well enough to handle-"

"No. Please allow me to do this. I want to bring this battle to a quick end with as few deaths as possible. Can I? Can I help His Majesty, Sir Lloyd, Miss Cecile?"

"As long as you don't get broken again, Kururugi-san, then I'd like to witness you utilize those weapons." Lloyd didn't waste a second in replying.

"If you really want to, Suzaku…"

"All right then, I'm ready." He said, gripping the start-up levers in anticipation.

"Are you now? Well, you heard the boy Cecile, let's get going!" Lloyd said and clapped enthusiastically.

_I wonder what sort of thoughts run through his head._ Suzaku briefly wondered before he felt the Sakuradite power-up below him, the machine humming to life while Cecile listed and checked each engine and major function.

"Thank you, Lloyd, Cecile, this is truly a marvelous power you've given me to use, if only for a little while. You've renewed my hope, hope to find my friend and a certain girl." Suzaku whispered before taking a deep breath, and powering up the machine at full throttle, charging after the terrorists.

...

Downtown Shinjuku Ruins

...

Lelouch was still chuckling with satisfaction while he studied his map, "It'll only be moments before we break through their final defenses."

He cracked his knuckles and was about to relay some more instructions to Ohgi before he noticed on his map that a unit of four Knightmares became lost for no apparent reason. Confused, Lelouch asked one of the teams closest to them,

"What's going on over there?"

"There's a Knightmare! It's like nothing I've never seen before, no matter how much we fire it keeps on deflecting our bullets." He responded, the panic evident in his voice.

"How many are there?"

"Just one. It's white and really-" The man tried to reply before emitting a piercing cry that was cut short as his communication line went dead, which could only mean the mysterious Knightmare had gotten him too.

_Useless terrorists._ Lelouch scowled, _How could so many units fall to a single enemy?_

In vain, it seems, Lelouch ordered several of his men to surround the Knightmare and rapidly fire from all sides, only for them to fail in the same way as the others.

"What could possibly be going on?" Lelouch wondered. If he didn't get to the bottom of this fast, this mysterious Knightmare may very well be his downfall, as it already took out twelve Knightmares in such a short frame of time.

_Move out of my way, you evil terrorists. I must save Lelouch and that girl at all costs._ Suzaku thought within his powerful white Knightmare, suddenly seeing on his screen an energy response hidden in a high-rise apartment building. Wasting no time, he fired his Slash Harkens to steady himself and climbed to the top. From where Lelouch was standing, a series of angry pounding noises could be heard and were quickly getting closer.

_That sound… definitely Slash Harkens which means- The ace Knightmare!_ Lelouch saw the imposing machine just a second before it attempting to slice his cockpit open with its sword.

"Yes, this must be the Knightmare that ruined my plans." Lelouch scowled at the realization.

"Without a doubt this is the terrorist leader that started this whole murdering spree." Suzaku grimaced as he began firing at the enemy Sutherland.

"How dare you? How dare you stand in the way of my plan!" Lelouch growled, the force of them battling in the dilapidated building causing it to shift and crumble and what was worse: the powerful Knightmare now officially had him cornered.

"This is the end of you, terrorist!" Suzaku yelled and was about to smite his Frame open when out of nowhere, the Glasgow woman appeared, surprisingly able to even show resistance against the twice-over superior machine.

"There, now we're even!" She told Lelouch as she had the Lancelot in a deadlock, only to eject once the white Knightmare quickly outmatched her,

Though her sacrifice wasn't in vain, as it had bought just enough time for Lelouch to escape. But not without being noticed, as with a snarl he noticed the enemy was still tailing him. Exasperated with his persistence, Lelouch turned and fired his guns, only for the machine to expertly dodge and weave between the bullets and debris falling all around it without difficulty.

"What the hell is this monster?" Lelouch wondered, his eyes widening with shock and fear.

"Evil terrorist! He doesn't care about the casualties he's inflicting!" Suzaku frowned and continued his pursuit of the leader while the building crumbled around him.

A mother and her baby were falling from the top of one of these buildings, temporarily causing Suzaku to halt and jump up to catch them, setting the two on the ground before starting up again, though the woman was more scared than grateful, screaming and running as soon as she was set down.

"He stopped to save bystanders in battle?" Lelouch shook his head. "It'd be admirable if he actually liked justice, though to be honest, dealing with him isn't a priority of mine. It's time to get to the heart of the problem, time to get to Clovis." He said to himself, parking his Sutherland in an different apartment building and after hesitating for a moment, brought along only his transmitter.

_In case the terrorists need my assistance or Clovis initiates a surprise attack I'll have my transmitter with me, although I'll have to get rid of it after I complete my mission as there is a slight possibility they could use it to track me, though if my assumptions prove to be correct, I'll be out of there within ten minutes. _Lelouch thought to himself, the red geass sigil activating in his left eye as he walked towards Clovis' encampment.

"Where is he?" Suzaku realized he'd just let his enemy escape in the midst of saving the woman and her child and dodging the collapsing buildings.

"Hey Suzaku, you must be tired, how about stopping for now?" Cecile asked him, her gentle voice laced with genuine concern for his well-being, detectable even through the static of Suzaku's headset for his well-being.

"No, I want to stop the terrorists, please let me continue." He told her and attempted to search for the resistance leader once more, not knowing Lelouch had already ejected from his Knightmare. Yet not even a minute passed before all of his efforts were ceased with a single command:

"I order you in the name of Prince Clovis la Britannia, steward of Area 11 to withdraw from Shinjuku. I repeat, withdraw from Shinjuku. Stop the destruction of our nation and tend to the wounded, regardless if they are Britannian or Eleven. I will permit no further combat."

"But…" Suzaku wanted to continue to fight. He wanted to make that the terrorist leader pay for what he'd done. He wanted to find Lelouch and the girl to make sure they were okay, yet if he did any of those things he'd end up disobeying orders, and not just any orders, but the orders of the Third Prince of Britannia. Realizing this, Suzaku frowned, annoyed with losing the game, but not so irked to risk his new position and freshly restored life to put his mind at ease.

Only moments before Suzaku's pursuit of Lelouch, Clovis' order reverberated through the entire ghetto, Britannians and Elevens shocked by this drastic turn of events while Clovis sat in his throne room, chuckling with amusement.

"Is that all?"

"Yes, very good." A young man dressed as a common foot soldier in a black and grey suit and equipped with the matching mask appeared in the entrance of Prince Clovis' throne room as only a shadowy figure amidst the darkness in the room, the only thing certain about him was the fact that he held a gun at his side.

"What's next? Do you want me to sing a song? Get up and dance? Or perhaps, play a game of chess?" Clovis addressed the man before him in a mocking tone. To the masked man, the final word was like firing a trigger, releasing a barrage of emotions and memories, only seeming to grow more bitter and poignant with time. Without being able to control himself, the man ultimately revealed his identity and motives in a sinisterly low growl.

"Chess? That brings back memories. Remember how I would always beat you, you and anyone else who would challenge me aside from Schneizel? Remember how I always insisted upon being the black king, refusing to play if I wasn't that color? Do you recall how we'd play 'Area 11' and pretend to capture a new Area for Britannia? Remember, oh, do you remember how we'd play in the creek near my mother's villa, he'd catch frogs and play sailboats, coming home messy and dirty and make our mothers fuss? And don't you remember, Clovis, remember how my mother died, supposedly by 'terrorists', even though it would have been impossible to attack the very capital of Britannia? Remember how my father exiled me and Nunnally to a foreign country in which the Emperor had full intentions to destroy? Because I sure do, and I know you do as well, regardless of you and those other fools' attempts to barricade the ever-growing closet of skeletons with lies and deception. And believe me when I say, I'm not the type to forgive and forget."

"What is this trick? Who are you? I-I'll have you arrested for such a vile farce. How dare you… pretend to be... pretend to be..." Clovis got up from his chair and pressed himself against the wall, the figure emerging from the shadows, still holding the gun.

"Yes, it's been a long, long time, Big Brother." Lelouch said, dramatically removing his mask to reveal a new indifferent mask written on his face, contrary to Clovis, who couldn't believe what he was seeing.

"No! It can't be, I thought... you must be-"

"The son of the late Princess Marianne and the seventeenth successor to the throne of Britannia, Lelouch vi Britannia, at your service." Lelouch bowed in a mock sense of humility to his blonde, amethyst-eyed half-brother.

"Lelouch? But, they all said you had died…"

"They? Just exactly who is this 'they'?" Lelouch walked up the stairs to only stand a few feet from the older prince, pretending to be temporarily confused before continuing with a sinister scowl that could freeze hell over.

"Oh, I guess you must mean that bastard, the Emperor. That makes sense. You never were the type to try and figure things out for yourself, happy to be the Emperor's little puppet. But I have returned, dear brother, to change the entire world and obliterate Britannia."

"I'm so glad, Lelouch!" Clovis tried to sound calm, even when his supposedly dead half-brother pointed a gun at his head, his voice audibly faltering and his lip quivering for the fear of his life. "I heard you died after you were sent to Japan. I'm so happy you're okay. How is Nunnally? Did she make it out too? This is the happiest day for me, the whole reason why I came down here to be Viceroy in the first place was to search for signs that you and Nunnally had possibly survived."

The natural grace of the older prince slowly returned to him, the older prince carefully wrapping his long, willowy fingers around Lelouch's gun while standing back up to his full height of about six foot two, softening his gaze into a sympathetic expression that you would offer to a hurt child, equipped with affectionate hand gestures and a sorrowful poetic voice.

"I'm sure it's been so awful for you, living as a commoner for all those years, having to scrape on by each and every day while the rest of us have had a life of luxury. I bet you must hate all of us so much for not being able to stop your ill-treatment, and especially the Emperor for throwing you away so cruelly. Will you ever forgive us? At least, will you be able to forgive me?" Clovis smiled with heart-wrenching compassion, carrying on his plea with some of the same words and tone that he used to lie to the residents of Area 11 while covering up the truth during important announcements.

If Lelouch let him live, he would more than likely go through the motions in the exact same pattern regarding the Shinjuku incident. The thing was though, Clovis was such a naturally good actor and charismatic speaker, Lelouch would have given in completely if it weren't for the last line,

"Won't you come back home with me, to Pendragon? This nightmare of yours can finally end, and you and Nunnally can be safe and loved, at least by your half-siblings, once more." Lelouch stopped, his expression quickly shifting from understanding to seething hate.

"Is that it then, Clovis? You intend to use me as some sort of diplomatic tool once we head back to the very breeding grounds of that monster!" Lelouch's expression hardened further at the thought of him and Nunnally being thrown back into that pit of vipers.

"It seems you've forgotten just how much you've been used as a tool, how all of your little accomplishments are padded by the fact that you're the Emperor's son. It's people like you, who leaned solely on their heritage that hated my mother and caused her demise. Yes, my mother Marianne the Flash was the Emperor's favorite princess even though she was of common birth. There was no doubt that some of the other princesses were annoyed with her, but making her assassination look like a terrorist attack was just plain cruel. Tell me, why? Why, Clovis?"

Lelouch knew that Clovis, who was just a young teen at the time, would never have done such a thing, especially since he was one of the few amongst the young royalty who actually liked Lelouch and Nunnally. But Lelouch only wanted a confession, an answer, or at least a step in the right direction as to finding out who killed his mother and crippled Nunnally so he could promptly exact his revenge. Even if he didn't get any of those things, it was satisfying in a sadistic way to see somebody besides him suffer for once.

"It wasn't me!" Clovis cried, cowering when Lelouch pointed the gun directly at his forehead, with no escape in sight for the elder prince, preceding his hell-bent, murder-intent younger brother by seven years.

"Then tell me everything you know. No one can lie to me now." Lelouch lowered his voice into a barely audible whisper and commanded,

"Lelouch vi Britannia commands you to tell me, who was it that killed my mother?" Instantly, Clovis' frightened expression softened, his body slumping lower to the ground in the relaxation of his mind necessary to extract this crucial information.

"The Second Prince Schneizel and Second Princess Cornelia. They know." Clovis told him calmly.

"What? They did it?" Lelouch asked him, stunned.

Cornelia absolutely adored Marianne, always babbling on and on about she wanted to be just like her when she grew up. And Schneizel was the one who taught Lelouch everything he knew about strategy, chess, and military affairs. Back in his time as a prince, Lelouch had regarded him as a mentor, and one of the few he considered his superior. But Clovis was unable to reply to this, not knowing if it was true or not.

"You don't know very much, do you?" Lelouch sighed and narrowed his eyes, turning off his geass. Clovis instantly pressed himself back against the wall, tears pooling in his glassy lilac eyes.

"It really wasn't me! I didn't do it! I'd never do that to your mother, to you, or to Nunnally!" Clovis sobbed and held his hands in front of his face to block the frightening sight of his vengeful little brother.

"All right then, I believe you." Lelouch smiled warmly at his older brother and lowered his gun. "But... that isn't the only issue at hand. Regardless of your innocence in that crime, you're still one of his children, still guilty of playing along with his mind games, manipulation, and goddamned Social Darwinism. His evil blood courses with your veins, joined together with that of a useless woman who was willing to give herself over to his ideals. And for that, you must die." Lelouch's smile turned into a vicious grin and rammed Clovis in the temple with his gun, holding down the trigger.

"Any last words..."

"No! Stop! Please, Lelouch! We may not share the same mother, but I'm still your brother! You know very well I had no choice but to go along with the Emperor! I never believed in his ideals either, you know, that's why I created the Honorary Britannian system, that's one of the reasons why I came to like you so much, I never judged you even because of your heritage. That's why I came here, I came here to find you!" Clovis repeated loudly, as if Lelouch hadn't heard him the first time,

"B-B-But you don't have to go back to Pendragon... little brother. You can just stay here; I can-I will keep your existence a secret! I'll help you get revenge for Princess Marianne! I'll help you protect Nunnally! Please! I'll do anything! Anything at all!" Clovis was hysterical at this point, visibly trembling and hyper-ventilating, tears streaming down his face, the very picture of humility, rising up to his knees to beg for his life further.

However, no one ever gave Lelouch a choice when his mother was assassinated. No one ever asked for his opinion when he was carted away to Japan. No one gave him or Nunnally second chances after their childhood was stripped from them. And meanwhile Clovis, as he pointed out, lived a life of luxury, eagerly serving the Emperor at his very beck and call. Lelouch scowled and slipped on his foot soldier's mask, seeing this as a finished job. Clovis, that bastard, he didn't deserve sympathy from anyone.

"I'm sorry. The world won't change by lies uttered from the naive like you."

Lelouch grimaced and prepared to release the trigger, until an eerie calm fell over his older brother's face, completely diluting his fear-contorted face until only a faint ghost of a smile remained, his lilac irises seeming to dilate slightly.

"No. You're not sorry. But mark my words, you will be, Lelouch. I'll guarantee it." And as quick as a wink, he bolted up from the place Lelouch had cornered him. Surprised, Lelouch misfired, the sudden bang of the gunshot seeming to trigger Clovis to run.

"No! I won't allow you to escape, Clovis! You ruined me… and you've ruined the lives of thousands of people in Shinjuku! Over what? Defending your pride!" Lelouch yelled and jumped to his feet, scowling as he tried to aim accurately at his brother's panicked frenzy of a retreat.

"Stop! I command you, leave me alone! Go away! Just get out, please …" Clovis yelled, clutching his head and sprinting about, running into various objects in the room and yelping like a dog being beaten, throwing off his jacket and several articles of clothing until he only wore his white undershirt and odd-looking silky black tights.

To his dismay, after firing nine times the only thing he managed to do was break the windows and make holes in the upholstery, barely managing to hit Clovis' left arm once, which didn't slow him down in the slightest.

"Lelouch… Lelouch…" He stood still, panting and exhausted from his maniac endeavor, and although he cooled down almost completely within ten seconds, something had changed about his eyes, his posture, and the very presence of the man had stood before him.

"Answer me, for before I die I have but one last question. I can explain Shinjuku, only… only if I have this confirmation. You, disguised as a foot soldier of all things managed to come into my room. You then manipulated my memory, said things I didn't tell you that I knew… Do you- Do you have a geass then, Lelouch?" It was Clovis' voice, yet not Clovis' voice, his tone deadpan and flat like a machine's, his eyes cold and glassy like marble as if he were already dead, or possessed, the only thing that reminded Lelouch that he was talking to a fellow human was the cold glint of malevolence in the man's lilac orbs.

"Geass! So you can call upon the name of this power? You know its capabilities? I get it now… THAT was your project, why you destroyed Shinjuku. Foolish wastrel, how were you so careless as to allow terrorists to steal it? Furthermore you destroy an entire section of a city to cover up your carelessness, allow me- ME! To command terrorists against an elite Britannian army! While I appreciate your stupidity allowing me this perfect opportunity to exact my revenge, I expected better of you, brother."

"And I can see clearly now too. Yes, so this is the path you will take? Terrorism, murder, relentless warfare, this is how you will achieve your results? You truly are the son of Marianne the Flash, aren't you? Then be prepared. Be aware of the chains of sacrifice that will bind your feet in place. Be wary of the trail of crimson betrayal and regret that will spill from your hands and feet. Make yourself immune as the ground beneath your feet will cry out, choked with the gore it has witnessed. Add the burden of the power of king, which will isolate you even more, so shoot me shoot me if you may. I will look forward to seeing you in hell, dear little brother."

A bone-chilling grin of pure malice spread across his face as he spread his arms wide, ready to embrace his death. He tipped his head back just slightly so his straw-colored hair caught the sun's rays spilling in from the broken windows, his hair ablaze with white-hot fire.

"What are you waiting for? Get angry, hurt me, prove me wrong, kill me. Think of my death as a prerequisite for what's to come. What's the matter, Lelouch? Too scared? Have I frightened you out of your little vendetta?"

Lelouch held his gun, poised straight at Clovis' chest. But he didn't shoot. Something just felt off. Sure Clovis got dramatic, and was one of the most believable actors he'd known. From childhood, it was often his brilliant, yet believable stories that got the pair out of trouble on numerous occasions. This skill had carried over to the present, as seen in his speeches and daily repertoire, but this was just… strange. The scared suck-up, that the reaction Lelouch had been expecting, but not this panicked flight, ominous talk, and goading him into murder… that just didn't feel right.

_Any enemy that asks for death like this, unless damned, obviously has some hidden motive, some back-up plan or a trick up their sleeve. He just seems too calm to have lost his mind completely._

"Why waste a perfect opportunity to exact a measure of revenge against Britannia? Everyone will miss me, the benign yet naive Viceroy of Area 11."

"Everyone except us!" A young female's voice yelled from the doorway. Lelouch whipped his head around to see the red-haired woman from the terrorist group and about four more men from their squad, pointing guns at Clovis.

"Don't shoot!" He yelled over to them, but it was too late. Gunshots flew by either side him, and hit Clovis in his right shoulder, and then again in his chest. The blood-curdling sound of Clovis scream echoed throughout the room as he stumbled backwards.

"Help me…" In this moment, Clovis suddenly recovered from his trance-like state, the fear and surprise registering on his face once more and he whispered to his equally confused younger brother, "Why? Why, Lelouch? I just wanted to help you. I just wanted-" One final bullet hit him, piercing the same shoulder once more, though this one seemed to affect Clovis the most as he began stumbling backwards.

"I said stop!" Lelouch roared at them, rushing forward to his brother, his dear older brother, whose lavender eyes pleaded for salvation.

"Lelouch…" He said once again before stepping back one last time, leaning back towards the giant, yet broken window. And he lost his balance and fell out.

"Clovis!" He yelled and ignored the glass shards piercing his skin as he got on his knees and reached for him, missing only by inches.

_He won't survive that. Four bullets. 100 meter drop. He won't… survive..._ For a moment Lelouch sat there, on his knees, watching to see where his body would land, but he couldn't even see as something liquid clouded his field of vision. Tears? Impossible. Lelouch vi Britannia, outcast prince of the Empire, was supposed to be above such sentiments. And yet two salty drops of water fell down his face, concealed completely by his foot soldier mask.

"Zero." The leader of the terrorist group rushed over to him. "We found your location from your transmitter. Pretty impressive how you managed to sneak through the guards like that and get to the prince this quickly."

"You!" Lelouch said suddenly, standing straight up to face the five of them. "Why did you shoot him!"

"You were pointing your gun at him. I figured, if anything you would shoot him. But besides that, he's the enemy. What good could he have been alive?-"

"You should really think before acting. Clovis was a beloved member of the royal family. As a hostage, he could have been used to attain so much. Even if we didn't take that route, Clovis is still a puppet, a figurehead, and nothing more. He is not a strategist. With him leading the Britannian army, our victory would be certain each time. Now, the Britannians will be angry and send someone ruthless and cold, someone with a lust for war and revenge. They will take their vengeance on us, on the Japanese, the ones you fight to avenge and protect. Hundreds will die in addition to the unfortunate inhabitants of Shinjuku." Lelouch snarled, getting up and walked toward the door, saying only a few last parting words,

"But when the storm comes, we'll be there to fight against the wind and rains, that much I can promise you. You should be able to escape just fine, as the guards are not… hostile at the moment," Lelouch refrained from mentioning that he geassed the guards to let anyone through who asks, and have no memory of the incident for this hour.

"I'll be contacting you soon, Ohgi."

"Zero…" Ohgi called to him, but Lelouch just ignored it, slowly walking away from his brother's palace and final shot at redemption.

...

I'll entice you to regret again in the morning


	4. Chapter 4: Nonsense and News

I BET U THOUGHT THIS WAS CHAPTER 4

Yeah. Ok. A whole lot of stupid has been happening, and that's just that. SO NO, this fanfic is NOT DEAD but on a hiatus. This should last about three or so months till I can get all of the noise called life out of my head and concentrate on what's important: para-para dancing, cosplay costume making, and fanfiction writing.

1: School sucks. I'm a sophmore in high school and shit's already too hard. Well, I hate homework.

2: My parents love to steal my laptop.

3: Cheer is so demanding. I have like three basketball games a week and it gets on my nerves.

4: Animecons are fun.

5: Yu-gi-oh abridged (CardGamesFTW) is funny.

And I'm rewriting because I found stupid incosisenticies. So see you around, peeps.

EDIT

Just decided, 10 minutes after posting this, I'm going to take the time to answer your questions.

FEEL PLEASED. I was about to take a nap

**Asukaforever92**- You delight me, always reviewing ^.^ Yes, it is the beginning of the drama.

**N. Silvutra Mayhem**- THANK YOU! YOU, MY FRIEND, SUCCEED! I write fanfiction for two reasons: 1, Every time I try to write, I look over my 40-chapter long manuscript and am like, What am I trying to write here? Code Geass R3? Rip off Death Note? Fml… So I'm trying to get those works out of my system and also to give me some practice, as I want to write amazing novels of doom, but I don't have time to be awesome and original with school nonsense going on all the time, so i was looking for a rather critical review on my writing skills!

Detailing, yes, I know, I just want stuff to make things make sense, so that carries into my writing and I'll keep that in mind. And the time-skip, Lelouch only had to get the soldier's attention, use geass, and slip the uniform on over his clothes. Not that much time, but I'll look over it again. I get what you're saying with the redundant dialogue words, but I just wanted to make it sound natural, so I'll fix that. So thanks for that. Arigatou Gozaimasu!

And, this is nothing against you in particular, but this is to everyone else as well who won't even read this part of the chapter thingy:

I'd like a collective silencing about the pace, because until I lay down a nice foundation, how can I build up from there into something awesome? Yeah. Can't happen can it? And hey, you might wish for the slower pace for the plot curves I'm about to throw at you. -whispers creepily- IT WILL WARP YOUR MINDDDUH.

**Lordban**- Plot! Need i say more. Oh, and thank you for your review!

**xXxFluffyxXx-** I might move it. Simply because if I don't I'll never hear the end of that. And yes, our favorite magnificent bastards will meet in an epic clash of, um… epicness. yes. epicness. So great of a word that it has just made my spellchecker angry. And thanks for your review!

**Reader-** Yay! OOO EMM GEEE You make me squeal with delight! I love happy reviews! It makes me feel warm and cakey inside! Nyer, thanks!


	5. Chapter 5: Sadly, No story right now

I KNOW EACH OF YOU HATE ME.

But guess what, you know how I said I would update after school ended?

Well

You see

The laptop I use for fanfiction (the only one I have) is school-issued, and at the end of school year during May, the admins come in and delete all of your files and install shit.

So then

I put all of my info on my flashdrive, but then shortly after it broke.

Not in half, just, internally something is off because no computers will read it even though its physically and superficially intact. I have no idea how to fix this, and I still don't even after several months, but there you go. That's why I haven't updated. I didn't forget, I swear. 500,000 words approx are here, literally in my pocket, but not. Anyone who writes fanfiction knows that this is a major ass haul and losing it is a real 'sux to be u' moment. And it is.

So I am and have been hitting up local computer nerds so they can retrieve SOMETHING. But a lot of them are just like, lolol get a new one. Especially I'm not really willing to pay. Sucks not having a job right?

I'm sorry. If I cant recover anything by the New Year, I'm just restarting everything and I will have to re-configure plots and blah blah blah. Probably with a friend of two, because there is no way I'm sitting here and typing 500,000 words by myself again. Noooooooo. Especially because I expect this story to hit close to a million words.

Fuck everything. Except for my wonderful fans who are still waiting.

Again, I am terribly sorry. Please forgive my flashdrive's insolence.


End file.
